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ROBINSON CRUSOE 



'*1 beckoned him to come nearer.” [Page 135] 


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ROBINSON CRUSOE 

His Life on a Desert Island 


Following fHE Language of the 
Original Text by Daniel De Foe 
(1661-1731) 


edited by OSSIAN LANG 


ILLUSTRATED WITH THE FAMOUS PICTURES 
BY GEORGE CRUIKSHANK 



NEW YORK 

A, S. BARNES & COMPANY 
1907 



' V /I 

Nr 


UBBARY of CONGRESS 
Two Ooolss Received 


MAR 8 I90r 


S Copyrljrht Entry 
LASS A XXCm No. 

hYlia/. 

COPY B. 



COPYBIGHT 1907 BY 

A. S. BARNES & COMPANY 

ALL BIGHTS BESEBVED 



r 


PREFACE 


When Rousseau laid out his wonderful plan of education, 
he discarded from it books of every kind, excepting only one, 
and that was Robinson Crusoe. This was then, is now, 
and probably always will be the great classic of the boyhood 
of all ages. Everything that young people crave seems 
to be supplied in the entrancing tale. But it is not to 
De Foe’s book as a whole that the praises of interested 
readers are accorded. The Robinson Crusoe that survives 
is the boy who left home, was shipwrecked and lived on 
a desert island. With his return to civilization the interest 
ends. Complete editions are well enough for reference 
libraries, to be consulted by curious students of literature. 
The young want the story that they have chosen for their 
very own. And that they should have. The Twentieth 
Century makes too many demands upon the interests 
to permit of wasteful reading. Furthermore, it is well 
known that the young will skip the uninteresting portions 
anyway. Why should encouragement be given to the 
formation of a habit that must lead to superficiality ? 

The present edition contains all that the readers, of Robin- 
son Crusoe will want to have and ought to have. The 
young will enjoy every line of it, and so will every one else 
who has not hitherto read the immortal classic. The 
language of the original has been followed as closely as 
possible, a feature which, it is hoped, will render this edition 
particularly attractive. 


The Editor. 


% 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


said, and then he would apply himself diligently to work 
in his father’s business. His mother became very angry 
when he told her of his plan. She would have nothing to 
do with it. About a year after this, when Robinson hap- 
dened to be again at Hull, he met a friend who was going 
by sea to London in his father’s ship. This friend invited 
him to go along. Crusoe' accepted the invitation without 
a moment’s hesitation. 

His misfortunes began as soon as the ship had left the 
harbor. The wind blew, and the sea rose in a most frightful 
manner. As Robinson had never been at sea before, he 
was very sick in body and mind. He expected every wave 
would swallow everybody, and that every time the ship fell 
down, as he thought it did, in the trough or hollow of the 
sea, it would never rise again. In his agony of mind he 
resolved that if it would please God to spare his life, he 
would, if he ever got his foot upon dry land again, go directly 
home to his father, and never be on a ship again while he 
lived. These good resolutions continued all the while the 
storm lasted, and indeed some time after. 

The next day the wind was abated and the sea calmer. 
Crusoe, however, was very grave for all that day, being a 
little seasick still. Towards night the weather cleared up, 
the wind was quite over, and a fine evening followed. The 
sun went down perfectly clear, and rose so the next morning. 

Crusoe had slept well in the night, and was no longer 
seasick, but very cheerful. He looked with wonder upon 
the sea that was so rough and terrible the day before, and 
could be so calm and pleasant in so little a time after. 

When the ship at last got to London, Robinson Crusoe 
was not at all desirous to return to his parents. He wanted 
to see the world. One day he made the acquaintance of 
the master of a ship, who was going to Brazil. 

''Oh, how I wish I might go with you!” Crusoe exclaimed. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


S 


‘‘Then come/' the captain said. “It will cost you noth- 
ing. You shall be my messmate. To-morrow we sail." 

Robinson Crusoe was overjoyed at the prospect of seeing 
strange countries and strange people. It did not take him 
long to prepare for the voyage. The next morning he 
presented himself on board, and at noon the ship was under 
way. 

When Crusoe returned to England he was a pretty good 
sailor. To his great misfortune the captain who had taken 
such a friendly interest in him died. This happened on 
the second voyage to Brazil. The body was buried at sea 
and the first mate now took command of the ship. 

^ Crusoe and the new captain did not get on well together. 
They did not quarrel. Each treated the other with the 
utmost courtesy. But they were not friends. Crusoe was 
unhappy. When the ship arrived in the Bay of Todos Los 
Santos, or All Saints’ Bay, in Brazil, he asked to be relieved 
of his duties. The captain paid him the money which 
was due him, and Crusoe went on shore. 

He now became a planter. But the love of the sea lived 
on in his heart. Although he w as very successful in business 
he could not be contented on land. On his twenty-seventh 
birthday he was again aboard a ship bound for the west 
coast of Africa. 

. The sails were set to the northward, for the first part of 
the course was along the Brazilian coast. The weather was 
fine, but excessively hot. There were aboard fourteen 
men, besides the master, his boy, and Robinson Crusoe. 
The ship was about one hundred and twenty tons burden 
and carried six guns. 

After the equator had been passed and the ship was in 
seven degrees twenty-two minutes northern latitude, a 
violent tornado, or hurricane overtook it. Beginning from 
the southeast it turned about to the northwest, and then 


4 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


settled into the northeast and blew in a terrible manner. 
For twelve days together the sailors could do nothing but 
let the ship carry them wherever the fury of the winds 
directed. 

In this distress, one of the men early one morning cried 
out, ‘"Land!” No sooner had the men run out ot the 
cabin to look out, in hopes of seeing whereabouts in the 
world they were, than the ship struck upon the sand. In a 
moment, her motion being so suddenly stopped, the sea 
broke over her and it looked for a moment as if all would 
perish immediately. They were driven below deck to 
shelter themselves from the very foam and spray of the sea. 

They did not know where they were, or upon what land 
they had been driven; whether an island or the main, whether 
inhabited or not inhabited. They sat in the cabin looking 
one upon another, and expecting death every moment, and 
every man acting accordingly, as preparing for another 
world. 

Meanwhile the wind abated a little and the sailors began 
to think of saving their lives as well as they could. The 
boat at the stern had broken away, and had either sunk, or 
been driven off to sea. There was another boat on board, but 
how to get her off into the sea was a doubtful thing. How- 
ever, there was no room for debate. The ship might break 
in pieces every minute. 

In this distress the mate of the vessel took hold of the 
boat, and with the help of the rest of the men, they got her 
flung over the ship’s side. All got in, and committed them- 
selves, being eleven in number, to God’s mercy and the 
wild sea. 

The sea went so high that the boat could not possibly 
escape. As to making sail, they had none, nor, if they had, 
could they have done anything with it. They worked at the oar 
towards the land, though with heavy hearts, like men going to 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


5 


death; for all knew that when the boat came near the shore, 
she would be dashed in a thousand pieces by the breach of the 
sea. The wind driving them towards the shore, they has- 
tened their destruction with their own hands, pulling as 
well as they could towards land. 

What the shore was, whether rock or sand, whether steep 
or shoal, they knew not; the only hope that could rationally 
give them the least shadow of expectation was, if they might 
happen into some bay or gulf, or the mouth of some river. 
But as they made nearer and nearer the shore, the land 
looked more frightful than the sea. 

After they had rowed, or rather driven, about a league 
and a half, as they reckoned it, a raging wave, mountain- 
like, came rolling astern of them. It took them with such 
a fury that it overset the boat at once. Separated from each 
other, as well as from the boat, they had scarcely time to 
say, “O God!’’ All were swallowed up in a moment. 


Crusoe on the Island 

AS TOLD BY HIMSELF. 

Nothing can describe the confusion of thought which I 
felt, when I sank into the water; for though I swam very 
well, yet I could not deliver myself from the waves so as to 
draw breath, till that wave having driven me, or rather 
carried me, a vast way on towards the shore, and having 
spent itself, went back, and left me upon the land almost 
dry, but half dead with the v/ater I took in. I had so much 
presence of mind, as well as breath left, that seeing myself 
nearer the mainland than I expected, I got upon my feet, 
and endeavored to make on toward the land as fast as I 
could, before another wave should return and take me up 
again; but I soon found it w^as impossible to avoid it; for I 
saw the sea come after me as high as a great hill, and as 
furious as an enemy which I had no means or strength to 
contend with; my business was to hold my breath, and 
raise myself upon the water, if I could; and so by swimming 
to preserve my breathing, and pilot myself towards the shore 
if possible, my greatest concern now being, that the wave, 
as it would carry me a great way towards the shore when 
it came on, might not carry me back again with it when it 
gave back towards the sea. 

6 

j 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


7 


The wave that came upon me again buried me at once 
twenty or thirty feet deep in its own body, and I could feel 
myself carried with a mighty force and swiftness towards 
the shore a very great way; but I held my breath, and 
^bsisted myself to swim still forward with all my might. I 
was ready to burst with holding my breath, when as I felt 
myself rising up, so, to my immediate relief,. I found my 
head and hands shoot out above the surface of the water; 
and though it was not two seconds of time that I could keep 
myself so, yet it relieved me greatly, gave me breath and 
new courage. I was covered again with water a good while, 
but not so long but I held it out; and finding the water had 
spent itself, and began to return, I struck forward against 
the return of the waves, and felt ground again with my 
feet. I stood still a few moments to recover breath, and till 
the waters went from me, and then took to my heels, and 
ran with what strength I had, farther towards the shore. 
But neither would this deliver me from the fury of the sea, 
which came pouring in after me again; and twice more I 
was lifted up by the waves and carried forward as before, 
the shore being very flat. 

The last time of these two had well-nigh been fatal to me; 
for the sea having hurried me along, as before, landed me, 
or rather dashed me against a piece of rock, and that with 
such force, as it left me senseless, and indeed helpless, as 
to my own deliverance; for the blow taking my side and 
breast, beat the breath as it were out of my body; and had it 
returned again immediately, I must have been strangled 
in the water; but I recovered a little before the return of 
the waves, and seeing I would be covered again with water, 
I resolved to hold fast by a piece of rock, and so to hold 
my breath, if possible, till the wave went back. Now, as 
the waves were not so high as at first, being nearer land, I 
held my hold till the wave abated, and then fetched another 


8 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


run, which brought me so near the shore, that the next 
wave, though it went over me, yet did not so swallow me 
up as to carry me away; and the next run I took, I got to 
the mainland; where to my great comfort, I clambered up 
the clifts of the shore, and sat me down upon the grass, 
free ffom danger, and quite out of the reach of the water. 

I was now landed, and safe on shore, and began to look 
up and thank God that my life was saved, in a case wherein 
there was, some minutes before, scarce any room to hope. 

I cast my eyes to the stranded vessel, when, the breach and 
froth of the sea being so big, I could hardly see it, it lay so 
far off; and considered. Lord! how was it possible I could 
get on shore 

After I had solaced my mind with the comfortable part 
of my condition, I began to look around me, to see what 
kind of place I was in, and what was next to be done; and 
I soon found my comforts abate, and that, in a word, I had 
a dreadful deliverance: for I was wet, had no clothes to 
shift me, nor anything either to eat or drink, to comfort me; 
neither did I see any prospect before me but that of perish- 
ing with hunger, or being devoured by wild beasts; and 
that which was particularly afflicting to me was that I had 
no weapon, either to hunt and kill any creature for my 
sustenance, or to defend myself against creatures that might 
desire to kill me for theirs. In a word, I had nothing about 
me but a knife, a tobacco pipe, and a little tobacco in a box. 
This was all my provision; and this threw me into terrible 
agonies of mind, that for awhile I ran about like a madman. 
Night coming upon me, I began, with a heavy heart, to 
consider what would be my lot if there were any ravenous 
beasts in that country, seeing at night tKey always come 
abroad for their prey. 

All the remedy that offered to my thoughts at that time 
was to get up into a thick, bushy tree, like a fir, but thorny, 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


9 


which grew near me, and where I resolved to sit all night, 
and consider the next day what death I should die, for as 
yet I saw no prospect of life. I walked about a furlong from 
the shore, to see if I could find any fresh water to drink, 
which I did to my great joy; and having drunk, I went to 
the tree, and getting up into it, endeavored to place myself 
so. that if I should sleep I might not fall. And having cut 
me a short stick, like a truncheon, -for my defense, I took 
up my lodging. I was very tired and fell fast asleep. 

when I waked it was broad day. The weather was clear, 
and the storm had abated, so that the sea did not rage and 
swell as before. What surprised me most was, that by the 
swelling of the tide the ship was lifted off in the night from 
the sand where she lay, and was driven up almost as far as 
the rock where I had been so bruised by the wave dashing 
me against it. This being within about a mile from the 
shore where I was, and the ship seeming to stand upright 
still, I wished myself on board, that at least I might save 
some necessary things for my use. 

When I came down from my lodgings in the tree, I looked 
about me. The first thing I found was the boat which lay, 
as the wind and sea had tossed her up, upon the land, about 
two miles on my right hand. I walked as far as I could 
upon the shore to get to her; but found between me and the 
boat a neck or inlet of water which was about half a mile 
broad. So I came back for the present, being more intent 
upon getting at the ship, where I hoped to find something 
for my present subsistence. 

A little after noon I found the sea very calm, and the tide 
ebbed so far out, that I could come within a quarter of a 
mile of the ship. Here I found a fresh renewing of my 
grief; for I saw evidently that, if we had kept on board, we 
should all have been safe; that is to say, we had all got safe 
on shore, and I had not been so miserable as to be left en- 


10 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


tirely destitute of all comfort and company, as I now was. 

I pulled off my clothes, for the weather was extremely hot, 
and took the water. When I came to the ship, my difficulty 
was still greater to know how to get on board. As she lay 
aground, and high out of the water, there was nothing within 
my reach to lay hold of. I swam round her twice. The 
second time I espied a piece of rope, which I wondered I 
did not see at first, hanging down by the forechains so low, 
that with great difficulty I got hold of it, and by the help of 
that rope got up into The forecastle of the ship. Here I 
found the ship was bulged, and had a great deal of water 
in her hold; but that she lay so on the side of a bank of 
hard sand, or rather earth, that her stern lay lifted up upon 
the bank, and her head low, almost to the water. By this 
means all her quarter was free and all that was in that part 
was dry; for you may be sure my first work was to search 
and to see what was spoiled and what was free. 

First, I found that all the provisions were dry and un- 
touched by the water. Being very well disposed to eat, I 
went to the bread room, and filled my pockets with biscuit, 
and ate as I went about other things, for I had no time to 
lose. I wanted nothing now, but a boat, to furnish myself 
with many things which I foresaw would be very necessary 
to me. 

It was in vain to sit still and wish for what was not to be 
had; and this extremity roused my application. There 
were several spare yards, and two or three large spars of 
wood, and a spare topmast or two in the ship: I resolved 
to fall to work with them, and I flung as many of them 
overboard as I could manage for their weight, tying every 
one with a rope, that they might not drive away. When 
this was done, I went down the ship’s side, and pulling 
them to me, I tied four of them together at both ends, as 
well as I could, in the form of a raft, and laying two or three 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


11 



short pieces of plank upon them, crossways, I found I could 
walk upon it very well, but that it was not able to bear any 
great weight, the pieces being too light. So I went to work, 
and with the carpenter’s saw I cut a spare topmast into 
three lengths, and added them to my raft, with a great deal 
of labor and pains. But the hope of furnishing myself with 
necessaries encouraged me to go beyond what I should have 
been able to have done upon another occasion. 


My raft was now strong enough to bear any reasonable 
weight. My next care was what to load it with, and how to 
preserve what I laid upon it from the surf of the sea. I was 
not long in considering this. I first laid all the planks or 
boards upon it that I could get, and having considered well 
what I most wanted, I first got three of the seamen’s chests, 
which I had broken open and emptied and lowered them 
down upon my raft. The first of these chests I filled with 


12 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


provisions; viz., bread, rice, three Dutch cheeses, five pieces 
of dried goat’s flesh (which we lived much upon), and a 
little remainder of corn, which had been laid by for some 
fowls which we brought to sea with us, but the fowls were 
killed. There had been some barley and wheat together; 
but, to my great disappointment, I found afterwards that 
the rats had eaten or spoiled it all. 

While I was doing this, I found the tide began to flow, 
though very calm. I had the mortification to see my coat, 
shirt and waistcoat, which I had left on shore upon the sand, 
swim away. As for my breeches, which were only linen, 
and open kneed, I swam on board in them and my stockings. 
However, this put me upon rummaging for clothes, of 
which I found enough, but took no more than I wanted for 
present use. I had other things which my eye was more 
upon; as, first, tools to work with on shore. It was after 
long searching that I found the carpenter’s chest, which 
was indeed a very useful prize to me, and much more val- 
uable than a ship-lading of gold would have been at that 
time. I got it down to my raft, whole as it was, without 
to look into it, for I knew in general what it 

My next care was for some ammunition and arms. There 
were two very good fowling-pieces in the great cabin and 
two pistols. These I secured first, with some powder horns 
and a small bag of shot, and two old rusty swords. I knew 
there were three barrels of powder in the ship, but knew 
not where our gunner had stowed them; but with much search 
I found them. Two of them were dry and good, the third had 
taken water. Those two I got to my raft, with the arms. 
And now I thought myself pretty well freighted, and began 
to think how I should get to shore with them, having neither 
sail, oar, nor rudder; and the least capful of wind would 
have overset all my navigation. 


losing 1 
contain 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


13 


I had three encouragements: first, a smooth, calm sea; 
secondly, the fact that the tide was rising and setting in to 
the shore; thirdly, what little wind there was blew me to- 
wards the land. And thus, having found two or three 
broken oars belonging to the boat, and, besides the tools 
which were in the chest, two saws, an axe, and a hammer, 
with this cargo I put to sea. For a mile or thereabouts 
my raft went very well, only that I found it drive a little 
distant from the place where I had landed before. By 
this I perceived that there was some ir.draft of the water, 
and consequently I hoped to find some creek or river there, 
which I might use as a port to get to land with my cargo. 

As I imagined, so it was. There appeared before me a 
little opening of the land, and I found that a strong current 
of the tide set into it; so I guided my raft, as well as I could, 
to keep in the middle of the stream. But here I had like 
to have suffered a second shipwreck, which, if I had, I think 
verily would have broken my heart; for, knowing nothing 
of the coast, my raft ran aground at one end of it upon a 
shoal, and, not being aground at the outer end, it wanted 
but a little that all my cargo had slipped off towards the end 
that was afloat, and so fallen into the water. 

I did my utmost, by setting my back against the chests, 
to keep them in their places, but with all my strength could 
not thrust off the raft; neither durst I stir from the posture 
I was in, but, holding up the chests with all my might, I 
stood in that manner nearly half an hour, in which time the 
rising of the water brought me a little more upon a level. 
A little after, the water still rising, my raft floated again, 
and I thrust her off with the oar I had, into the channel, and 
then driving up higher, I at length found myself in the mouth 
of a little river, with land on both sides, and a strong current 
or tide running up. I looked on both sides for a proper 
place to get to shore, for I was not willing to be driven too 


14 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


high up the river, because I hoped, in time, to see some 
ship at sea. Accordingly, I resolved to place myself as near 
the coast as I could. 

At length I spied a little cove on the right shore of the 
creek, to \vhich, with great pain and difficulty, I guided my 
raft, and at last got so near, that, reaching ground with my 
oar, I could thrust her directly in. But here I had liked to 
have dipped all my cargo into the sea again; for the shore 
lay pretty steep and sloping, and, wherever I might land, 
one end of my float, if it ran on shore, would lie so high, 
and the other be sunk so low, that it would endanger my 
cargo again. All that I could do was to wait till the tide 
was at the highest, keeping the raft with my oar like an 
anchor, to hold the side of it fast to the shore, near a flat 
piece of ground, and there fastened or moored her by stick- 
ing my two broken oars into the ground, — one on one side 
near the end, and one on the other side, near the other end. 
Thus I lay till the water ebbed away, and left my raft and 
all my cargo safe on shore. 

My next work was to view the country, and seek a proper 
place for my habitation, and where to stow my goods, to 
secure them from whatever might happen. Where I was, 
I yet knew not: whether on the continent or an island; 
whether inhabited or not inhabited; whether in danger of 
wild beasts or not. There was a hill not above a mile from 
me, which rose up very steep and high, and which seemed 
to overtop some other hills, which lay as in a ridge from it, 
northward. 

I took out one of the fowling-pieces, and one of the pistols, 
and a horn of powder; and thus armed, I traveled for dis- 
covery up to the top of that hill. After I had with great 
labor and difficulty got to the top, I saw to my great afflic- 
tion, that I was on an island environed on every side by 
the sea. No land was to be seen except some rocks which 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


15 


lay a great way off, and two small islands less than these, 
which lay about three leagues to the west. 

I found also that the island I was on was barren, and, as I 
saw good reason to believe, uninhabited except by wild 
beasts, of whom, however, I saw none. Yet I saw abun- 
dance of fowls, but I knew not their kinds; neither, when I 
killed them, could I tell what was fit for food, and what 
not. At my coming back, I shot at a great bird which I 
saw sitting upon a tree, on the side of a great wood. I 
believe it was the first gun that had been fired there since 
the creation of the world. I had no sooner fired, than from 
all parts of the wood there arose an innumerable flock of 
fowls, of many sorts, making a confused screaming and 
crying, every one according to his usual note, but not one 
of them of any kind that I knew. As for the creature I 

killed, I took it to be a kind of a hawk, its color and beak 

resembling that bird, but it had no talons or claws more 
than common. Its flesh was carrion, and fit for nothing. 

Contented with this discovery, I came back to my raft, 
and fell to work to bring my cargo on shore, which took up 

the rest of that day. What to do with myself at night I 

knew not, nor indeed where to rest, for I was afraid to lie 
down on the ground, not knowing but some wild beast 
might devour me, though, as I afterwards found, there was 
really no need for those fears. 

However, as well as I could, I barricaded myself round 
with the chests and boards that I had brought on sTiore, and 
made a kind of hut for that night’s lodging. As for food, 
1 yet saw not which way to supply myself, except that I had 
seen two or three creatures, like hares, run out of the wood 
where I shot the fowl. 

I now began to consider that I might yet get a great many 
things out of the ship, which would be useful to me, and 
particularly some of the rigging and sails, and such other 


16 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


things as might come to land; and I resolved to make another 
voyage on board the vessel, if possible. As I knew that the 
first storm that blew must necessarily break her all to pieces, 
I resolved to set all other work apart till I had got every- 
thing out of the ship that I could get. Then I called a 
council — that is to say, in my thoughts — whether I should 
take back the raft; but this appeared impracticable; so I 
resolved to go as before, when the tide was down; and I did 
so, only that I stripped before I went from my hut, having 
nothing on but a checkered shirt, a pair of linen drawers, 
and a pair of pumps on my feet. 

I got on board the ship as before, and prepared a second 
raft; and, having had experience of the first, I neither made 
this so unwieldy, nor loaded it so hard. Still I brought 
away several things very useful to me; as, first, in the car- 
penter’s stores, I found two or three bags full of nails and 
spikes, a great screw-jack, a dozen or two of hatchets, and, 
above all, that most useful thing, a grindstone. All these 
I secured, together with several things belonging to the 
gunner, particularly two or three iron crows, and two barrels 
of musket bullets, seven muskets, and another fowling-piece, 
with some small quantity of powder more; a large bagful of 
small shot, and a great roll of sheet-lead; but this last was 
so heavy I could not hoist it up to get it over the ship’s side. 
Besides these things, I took all the men’s clothes that I 
could find, and a spare fore-topsail, a hammock, and some 
bedding; and with this I loaded my second raft, and brought 
them all safe on shore, to my very great comfort. 

I was under some apprehension, during my absence from 
the land, that my provisions on shore might be devoured; 
but when I came back, I found no sign of any visitor; only 
there sat upon one of the chests a creature like a wildcat, 
which, when I came towards it, ran away a little distance, 
and then stood still. She sat very composed and undis- 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


17 


turbed, and looked full in my face, as if she had a mind to 
be acquainted with me. I presented my gun at her, but, 
as she did not understand it, she was perfectly unconcerned 
at it, nor did she offer to stir away. Hereupon I tossed her 
a bit of biscuit, though, by the way, I was not very free of it, 
for my store was not great. However, I spared her a bit, I 
say, and she went to it, smelled at it, and ate it, and looked 
(as if pleased) for more; but I thanked her, and could spare 
no more; so she marched off. 

Having got my second cargo on shore, — though I was 
obliged to open the barrels of powder, and bring them by 
parcels, for they were too heavy, being large casks, — I went 
to work to make me a little tent, with the sail and some 
poles which I cut for that purpose; and into this tent I brought 
everything that I knew would spoil either with rain or sun; 
and I piled all the empty chests up in a circle round the tent, 
to fortify it from any sudden attempt, either from man or 
beast. 

When I had done this, I blocked up the door of the tent 
with some boards within, and an empty chest set up on end 
without. Then spreading one of the beds upon the ground, 
and laying my two pistols just at my head, and my gun at 
length by me, I went to bed for the first time, and slept 
very quietly all night, for I was very weary and heavy. 
The night before I had slept little, and had labored very 
hard all day, to fetch all those things from the ship, and to 
get them on shore. 

I had the biggest magazine of all kinds now that ever was 
laid up, I believe, for one man; but still I was not satisfied, 
for while the ship sat upright in that posture, I thought I 
ought to get everything out of her that I could. Accordingly, 
every day, at low water, I went on board, and brought away 
something or other; but particularly the third time I went, 
I brought away as much of the rigging as I could, as also all 


18 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


the small ropes and rope twine I could get, with a piece of 
spare canvas which was to mend the sails upon occasion, 
and the barrel of wet gunpowder. In a word, I brought 
away all the sails first and last; only that I was obliged to 
cut them in pieces, and bring as much at a time as I could, 
for they were no more useful to be sails, but as mere canvas 
only. 

But that which comforted me more still was, that last of 
all, after I had made five or six such voyages as these, and 
thought I had nothing more to expect from the ship that 
was worth my meddling with, I say, after all this, I found a 
great hogshead of bread, three large runlets of rum, or 
spirits, and a box of sugar, and a barrel of fine flour. This 
was surprising to me, because I had given over expecting 
any more provisions, except what was spoiled by the water. 
I^soon emptied the hogshead of the bread, and wrapped it 
up, parcel by parcel, in pieces of the sails, which I cut out; 
and, in a word, I got all this safe on shore also. 

The next day I made another voyage; and now, having 
plundered the ship of what was fit to hand out, I began 
with the cables. Cutting the great cable into pieces such 
as r could move, I got two cables and a hawser on shore, 
with all the iron work I could get; and having cut down the 
spiritsail-yard, and the mizzen-yard, and everything I could 
to make a large raft, I loaded it with all these heavy goods, 
and came away. But my good luck began now to leave 
me; for this raft was so unwieldy, and so overladen, that 
after I had entered the little cove where I had landed the 
rest of my goods, not being able to guide it so handily as I 
did the other, it upset, and threw me and all my cargo into 
the water. 

As for myself, it was no great harm, for I was near the 
shore; but as to my cargo, it was a great part of it lost, 
especially the iron, which I expected would have been of 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


19 


great use to me. However, when the tide was out, I got 
most of the pieces of cable ashore, and some of the iron, 
though with infinite labor; for I had to dip for it into the 
water, a work which fatigued me much. After this I went 
every day on board, and brought away what I could get. 

I had been now thirteen days on shore, and had been 
eleven times on board the ship, in which time I had brought 
away all that one pair of hands could well be supposed 
capable of bringing. Indeed, I verily believe that had the 
calm weather held, I should have brought away the whole 
ship, piece by piece, but, preparing the twelfth time to go 
on board, I found the wind began to rise. However, at 
low water I went on board, and though I thought I had 
rummaged the cabin so effectually that nothing more could 
be found, I discovered a locker with drawers in it, in one of 
which I found two or three razors, and one pair of large 
scissors, with some ten or a dozen good knives and forks. 
In another I found some European coin, some Brazil, some 
pieces of eight, some gold, and some silver. 

I smiled to myself at the sight of this money. ‘‘O drug!” 
said I aloud, “what art thou good for ^ Thou art not worth 
to me — no, not the taking off the ground. One of those 
knives is worth all this heap; Hhave no manner of use for 
thee; e’en remain where thou art, and go to the bottom, as a 
creature whose life is not worth saving.” However, upon 
second thoughts, I took it away; and, wrapping all in a 
piece of canvas, I began to think of making another raft. 
But while I was preparing this, I found the sky overcast, and 
the wind began to rise, and in a quarter of an hour it blew 
a fresh gale from the shore. 

It presently occurred to me that it was in vain to pretend 
to make a raft with the wind off shore; and that it was my 
business to be gone before the tide of flood began, other- 
wise I might not be able to reach the shore at all. Accord- 


20 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


ingly, I let myself down into the water, and swam across* 
the channel which lay between the ship and the sands, and 
even that with difficulty enough, partly with the weight of 
the things I had about me, and partly from the roughness of 
the water; for the wind rose very hastily, and before it was 
quite high water it blew a storm. 

But I had got home to my little tent, where I lay with all 
my wealth about me very secure. It blew very hard all 
that night, and in the morning, when I looked out, behold, 
no ship was to be seen! I was a little surprised, but re- 
covered myself with this satisfactory reflection, that I had 
lost no time, nor omitted any diligence, to get everything 
out of her that would be useful to me; and that, indeed, 
there was little left in her that I was able to bring away, 
if I had had more time. 

I now gave over any more thoughts of the ship, or of any- 
thing out of her, except what might drive on shore from her 
wreck; as, indeed, divers pieces, of her afterwards did; but 
those things were of small use to me. 

My thoughts were now wholly employed about securing 
myself either against savages, if any should appear, or wild 
beasts, if any were in the island. I had many thoughts of 
the method how to do this, and what kind of dwelling to 
make — whether I should make me a cave in the earth, or a 
tent upon the earth. I resolved upon both. The manner 
and description of which it may not be improper to give an 
account of. 

I soon found the place I was in not fit for my settlement, 
particularly because it was upon low, moorish ground near 
the sea, and I believed would not be wholesome. Besides, 
there was no fresh water near it. So I resolved to find a 
more healthy and convenient spot of ground. 

I consulted several things in my situation, which I found 
would be proper for me: first, health and fresh water, I just 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


21 


now mentioned; secondly, shelter from the heat of the sun; 
thirdly, security from ravenous creatures, whether man or 
beast; fourthly, a view of the sea, that if God sent any ship 
in sight, I might not lose any advantage for my deliverance, 
of which I was not willing to banish my expectation yet. 

In search of a place proper for this, I found a little plain on 
the side of a rising hill, whose front towards this little plain 
was steep as a house-side, so that nothing could come dov n 
upon me from the top. On the side of the rock there was a 
hollow place, worn a little way in, like the entrance or door of 
a cave; but there was not really any cave, or way into the 
rock at all. 

On the flat of the green, just below this hollow place, I re- 
solved to pitch my tent. This plain was not above a hundred 
yards broad, and about twice as long, and lay like a green 
before my door, and at the end of it, descended irregularly 
every way down into the low ground by the seaside. It was 
on the N.N.W. side of the hill; so that it was sheltered from 
the heat of the day, till it came to the W. and by S. sun, or 
thereabouts, which, in those countries, is near the set- 
ting. 

Before I set up my tent, I drew a half circle before the hol- 
low place, which took in about ten yards in its semi-diameter, 
from the rock, and twenty yards in its diameter from its 
beginning and ending. 

In this half-circle I pitched two rows of strong stakes, 
driving them into the ground till they stood very firm like 
piles, the biggest end being out of the ground about five feet 
and a half, and sharpened on the top. The two rows did 
not stand above six inches from one another. 

Then I took the pieces of cable which I had cut in the ship, 
and laid them in rows, upon one another, within the circle; 
between these, two rows of stakes, up to the top, placing 
other stakes in the inside, leaning against them, about two 


22 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


feet and a half high, like a spur to a post. This fence was 
so strong that neither man nor beast could get into it or over 
it. This cost me a great deal of time and labor, especially 
to cut the piles in the woods, bring them to the place, and 
drive them into the earth. 

The entrance into this place I made to be, not by a door, 
but by a short ladder to go over the top; which ladder, when 
I was in, I lifted over after me. So I was completely fenced 
in and fortified, as I thought, from all the world, and conse- 
quently slept secure in the night, which otherwise I could 
not have done. It appeared afterwards, there was no need 
of all this caution from the enemies that I apprehended 
danger from. 

Into this fence or fortress, with infinite labor, I carried all 
my riches, all my provisions, ammunition, and stores, of 
which you have the account above. I made me a large tent 
also, to preserve me from the rains, that in one part of the 
year are very violent there. I made it double — viz., one 
smaller tent within, and one larger tent above it; and covered 
the uppermost part of it with a large tarpaulin, which I had 
saved among the sails. 

And now I lay no more for awhile in the bed which I had 
brought on shore, but in a hammock, which was indeed a 
very good one, and belonged to the mate of the ship. 

Into this tent I brought all my provisions, and everything 
that would spoil by the wet. Having thus inclosed all my 
goods, I made up the entrance, which until now I had left 
open, and so passed and repassed, as I said by a short ladder. 

When I had done this, I began to work my way into the 
rock, and bringing all the earth and stones that I dug down, 
out through my tent, I laid them up within my fence, in the 
nature of a terrace, so that it raised the ground within about 
a foot and a half. Thus I made me a cave, just behind my 
tent, which served me like a cellar to my house. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


23 


It cost me much labor and many days before all these 
things were brought to perfection. Therefore I must go 
back to some other things which took up some of my thoughts. 
At the same time it occurred, after I had laid my scheme for 
the setting up of the tent, and making the cave, that a storm 
of rain falling from a thick, dark cloud, a sudden flash of 
lightning happened, and after that, a great clap of thunder, 
as is naturally the effect of it. I was not so much surprised 
with the lightning,, as I was with the thought which darted 
into my mind as swift as the lightning itself. ‘‘Oh, my 
powder!” My very heart sank within me, when I thought 
that, at one blast, all my powder might be destroyed; on 
which not my defense only, but the providing me food, as I 
thought, entirely depended. I was nothing near so anxious 
about my own danger; though, had the powder took fire, I 
had never known who had hurt me. 

Such impression did this make upon me, that after the 
storm was over, I laid aside all my work, my building and 
fortifying, and applied myself to make bags and boxes to 
separate my powder, and to keep it a little and a little in a 
parcel, in hopes, that whatever might come, it might not all 
take fire at once; and to keep it so apart that it should not be 
possible to make one part fire another. I finished this work 
in about a fortnight. My powder, which in all was about 
one hundred and forty pounds weight, was divided into no 
less than a hundred parcels. As to the barrel that had been 
wet, I did not apprehend any danger from that; so I placed 
it in my new cave, which, in my fancy, I called my kitchen. 
The rest I hid up and down in holes among the rocks, so that 
no wet might come to it, marking carefully where I had laid it. 

In the interval of time while this was doing, I went out at 
least once every day with my gun, as well to divert myself as 
to see if I could kill anything fit for food; and, as near as I 
could, to acquaint myself with what the island produced. 


24 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


The first time I went out, I presently discovered that there 
were goats in the island, which was a great satisfaction to me; 
but then it was attended with this misfortune to me; viz., 
that they were so shy, so subtle, and so swift of foot, that it 
was the most difficult thing in the world to come at them. I 
was not discouraged at this, not doubting but that I might 
now and then shoot one, as it soon happened. After I had 
found their haunts a little, I laid wait for them. I observed 
if they saw me in the valleys, though they were upon the 



rocks, they would run away, as in a terrible fright; but if 
they were feeding in the valleys, and I was upon the rocks, 
they took no notice of me. I concluded that from the posi- 
tion of their optics, their sight was so directed downward 
that they did not readily see objects that were above them. 
So I afterward took this method— I always climbed the rocks 
first, to get above them, and then had frequently a fair mark. 

The first shot I made among these creatures I killed a 
she-goat, which had a little kid by her, which she gave suck 
to, which grieved me heartily. When the old one fell, the 
kid stood stock still by her, till 1 came and took her up. N o 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


25 


only so, but when I carried the old one with me upon my 
shoulders, the kid followed me quite to my enclosure. I laid 
down the dam, and took the kid in my arms, and carried it 
over my pale, in hopes to have bred it up tame; but it would 
not eat; so I was forced to kill it and eat it myself. These 
two supplied me with flesh a great while, for I ate spar- 
ingly, and saved my provisions, my bread especially, as 
much as I possibly could. 

Having now fixed my habitation, I found it necessary to 
provide a place to make a fire in, and fuel to burn. What I 
did for that, as also how I enlarged my cave, and what con- 
veniences I made, I shall give a full account of in its place. 

Being about to enter into a melancholy relation of a scene 
of silent life, such, perhaps, as was never heard of in the 
world before, I shall take it from its beginning, and continue 
it in its order. It was by my account, the 30th of September, 
when, in the manner as above said, I first set foot upon this 
horrid island; when the sun being to us in its autumnal equi- 
nox, was almost just over my head; for I reckoned myself, 
by observation, to be in the latitude of nine degrees twenty- 
two minutes north of the line. 

After I had been there about ten or twelve days, it' came 
into my thoughts that I should lose rny reckoning of time for 
want of books, and pen, and ink, and should even forget the 
Sabbath day from the working days. To prevent this, I cut it 
with my knife upon a large post, in capital letters; and mak- 
ing it into a great cross, I set it up on the shore where I first 
landed; viz.,“ I came on shore here on the 30th of Sept., 1659.” 

Upon the sides of this square post I cut every day a notch 
with my knife, and every seventh notch was as long again as 
the rest, and every first day of the month as long again as 
that long one. Thus I kept my calendar, or weekly, monthly, 
and yearly reckoning of time. 

Among the many things which I brought from the ship in 


26 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


the several voyages, which, as above mentioned, I made to it, 
I got several things of less value, but not at all less useful to 
me, which I omitted setting down before; as, in particular, 
ink, and paper; several parcels in the captain’s, mate’s, pens, 
gunner’s, and carpenter’s keeping; three or four compasses, 
some mathematical instruments, dials, perspectives, charts, 
and books of navigation; all which I huddled together, 
whether I might want them or no; also I found three very 
good Bibles, which came to me in my cargo from England, 
and which I had packed up among my things; some Portu- 
guese books also; and, among them, two or three prayer 
books, and several other books; all which I carefully secured. 
And I must not forget that we had in the ship a dog and two 
cats, of whose eminent history I must have occasion to say 
something in its place, for I carried both the cats with me. 
As for the dog, he jumped out of the ship of himself, and 
swam on shore to me the day after I went on shore with my 
first cargo, and was a trusty servant to me many years. I 
wanted nothing that he could fetch me, nor any company 
that he could make up to me. I only wanted him to talk to 
me, but that he could not do. As I observed before, I found 
pens, ink, and paper, and I husbanded them to the utmost; 
and I shall show that while my ink lasted, I kept things very 
exact. After that was gone I could not, for I could not make 
any ink by any.means I could devise. 

And this put me in mind that I wanted many things, not- 
withstanding all that I had massed together; and of these ink 
was one; as also a spade, pick-ax, and shovel, to dig or re- 
move the earth; needles, pins, and thread; as for linen, I 
soon learned to want that without much difficulty. 

This want of tools made every work I did go on heavily; 
and it was near a whole year before I had entirely finished 
my little pale, or surrounded habitation. The piles or stakes, 
which were as heavy as I could well lift^ were a long time in 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


27 


cutting and preparing in the woods, and more, by far, in 
bringing home. I spent sometimes two days in cutting and 
bringing home one of those posts, and a third day in driving 
it into the ground; for which purpose I got a heavy piece of 
wood at first, but at last bethought myself of one of the iron 
crows; which, however, though I found it, yet made driving 
those posts or piles very laborious and tedious work. But 
why need I have been concerned at the tediousness of any- 
thing I had to do, seeing I had time enough to do it in ? 
Nor had I any other employment, if that had been over, at 
least that I could foresee, except ranging the island to seek 
for food, which I did, more or less, every day. 

I now began to consider seriously my condition, and the 
circumstances I was reduced to; and I drew up the state of 
my affairs in writing, not so much to leave them to any that 
were to come after me, for I was like to have but few heirs, as 
to deliver my thoughts from daily poring upon them, and 
afflicting my rtiind; and as my reason began now to master 
my' despondency, I began to comfort myself as well as I 
could, and tjj set the good against the evil, that I might have 
something to distinguish my case from worse, and I stated it 
very impartially, like debtor and creditor, the comfort I en- 
joyed, against the miseries I suffered, thus: 


EVIL. 

I am cast upon a horrible, desolate 
island; void of all hope of recovery. 

I am singled out and separated, as it 
were, from all the world, to be miserable. 


I am divided from mankind, a solitary; 
one banished from human society. 

I have no clothes to cover me. 

I am without any defense, or means to 
resist any violence of man or beast. 


I have no soul to speak to or relieve me. 


GOOD. 

But I am alive; and not drowned, as all 
my ship’s company was. 

But I am singled out, too, from all the 
ship’s crew, to be spared from death; and 
He that miraculously saved me from death 
can deliver me from this condition. 

But I am not starved and perishing on 
a barren place, affording no sustenance. 

But I am in a hot climate, where if I 
had clothes, I could hardly wear them. 

But I am cast on an island where I see 
no wild beasts to hurt me as I saw on the 
coast of Africa; and what if I had been 
shipwrecked there? 

But God wonderfully sent the ship in 
near enough to the shore, that I have got 
out so many necessary things as will either 
supply my wants, or enable me tp supply 
myself, even as long as I live. 


28 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


Upon the whole, here was an undoubted testimony that 
there was scarce any condition in the world so miserable, but 
there was something negative, or something positive, to be 
thankful for in it: and let this stand as a direction, from the 
experience of the most miserable of all conditions in this 
world — that we may always find in it something to comfort 
ourselves from, and to set, in the description of good and evil, 
on the credit side of the account. 

Having now brought my mind a little to relish my con- 
dition, and giving over looking out to sea, to see if I could spy 
a ship; I say, giving over these things, I began to apply my- 
self to accommodate my way of living, and to make things as 
easy to me as I could. 

I have already described my habitation, which was a tent 
under the side of a rock, surrounded with a strong pale of 
posts and cables; but I might now rather call it a wall, for 1 
raised a kind of wall up against it of turfs, about two feet 
thick on the outside: and after some time (I think it was a 
year and a half), I raised rafters from it, leaning to the rock, 
and thatched or covered it with boughs of ti^es, and such 
things as I could get to keep out the rain, which I found at 
some times of the year very violent. 

I have already described how I brought all my goods into 
this pale, and into the cave which I had made behind me. 
But I must observe, too, that at first this was a confused heap 
of goods, which, as they lay in no order, so they took up all 
my place. I had no room to turn myself. So I set myself to 
enlarge my cave, and worked farther into the earth. It was 
a loose, sandy rock, which yielded easily to the labor I be- 
stowed on it. When I found I was pretty safe as to beasts of 
prey, I worked sideways, to the right hand, into the rock; 
and then turning to the right again, worked quite out, and 
made me a door to come out on the outside of my pale or 
fortification. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


29 


This gave me not only egress and regress, as it was a back 
way to my tent and to my storehouse, but gave me room to 
stow my goods. 

And now I began to apply myself to make such necessary 
things as I found I most wanted, particularly a chair and a 
table; for without these I was not able to enjoy the few com- 
forts I had in the world; I could not write or eat, or do 
several things with so much pleasure without a table. 

So I went to work. Here I must needs observe that as 
reason is the substance and original of mathematics, so by 
stating and squaring every thing by reason, and by making 
the most rational judgment of things, every man may be in 
time, master of every mechanic art. I had never handled a 
tool in my life; and yet in time by my labor, application, and 
contrivance, I found at last that I wanted nothing but I could 
have made it, especially if I had had tools. However, 
made abundance of things, even without tools; and some 
with no more tools than an adze and a hatchet, which, per- 
haps, were never made that way before, and that with in- 
finite labor. For example, if I wanted a board, I had no 
other way but to cut down a tree, set it on an edge before me, 
and hew it flat on either side with my axe till I had brought it 
to be as thin as a plank, and then dub it smooth with my 
adze. It is true, by this method I could make but one board 
out of a whole tree. This I had no remedy for but patience, 
any more than I had for the prodigious deal of time and 
labor which it took me to make a plank or board. My 
time and labor was little worth, and so it was as well em- 
ployed one way as another. 

However, I made me a table and a chair, as I observed 
above, in the first place; and this I did out of the short pieces 
of boards that I brought on my raft from the ship. But 
when I had wrought out some boards as above, I made 
large shelves, of the breadth of a foot and a half, one over 


30 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


another, all along one side of my cave, to lay all my tools, 
nails, and iron work on; and, in a word, to separate every- 
thing at large into their places, that I might come easily at 

them. Also I knocked pieces into the wall of the rock, to 
hang my guns and all things that would hang up. My cave 
looked like a general magazine of all necessary things. I 
had everything so ready at my hand, that it was a great 
pleasure to me to see all my goods in such order, and espe- 
cially to find my stock of all necessaries so great. 

Now it was when I began to keep a journal of every day’s 
employment; for, indeed, at first, I was in too much hurry, 
and not only an hurry as to labor, but in too much discom- 
posure of mind; and my journal would have been full of 
many dull things; for example, I must have said thus: 

'^ September 30. — After I had got to shore, and had escaped 
jirowning, instead of being thankful to God for my de- 
liverance, having first vomited, with the great quantity of 
salt water which had gotten into my stomach, and recovering 
myself a little, I ran about the shore wringing my hands and 
beating my head and face, exclaiming at my misery, and 
crying out I was undone, undone! till tired and faint, I was 
forced to lie down on the ground for repose, but durst not 
sleep, for fear of being devoured.” 

Some days after this, and after I had been on board the 
ship, and had got all I could out of her, yet I could not for- 
bear getting up on the top of a little mountain, and looking 
out to sea, in hopes of seeing a ship. Then fancy at a vast 
distance I spied a sail, please myself with the hopes of it, and 

then, after looking steadily, till I was almost blind, lose it 
quite, and sit down and weep like a child, and thus increase 
my misery by my folly. 

But having gotten over these things in some measure, and 
having settled my household stuff and habitation, made me a 
table and a chair, and all as handsome about me as I could, i 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


31 


began, I say, to keep my journal; of which I shall here give 
you the copy (though in it will be told aM these particulars 
over again), as long as it lasted; for at last, having no more 
ink, I was forced to leave it off. 

THE JOURNAL. 

Septernher 30, 1659. — I, poor miserable Robinson Crusoe> 
being shipwrecked during a dreadful storm in the offing> 
came on shore on this dismal, unfortunate island, which I 
called “The Island of Despair’’; all the rest of the ship’s 
company being drowned, and myself almost dead. 

All the rest of the day I spent in afflicting myself at the 
dismal circumstances I was brought to; viz., I had neither 
food, house, clothes, weapon, nor place to fly to; and in de- 
spair of any relief, saw nothing but death before me; either 
that i should be devoured by wild beasts, murdered by 
savages, or starved to death for want of food. At the ap- 
proach of night I slept in a tree, for fear of wild creatures; 
but slept soundly, though it rained all night. 

October i. — In the morning I saw, to my great surprise, 
the ship had floated with the high tide, and was driven on 
shore again, much nearer the island; which, as it was some 
comfort, on one hand (for seeing her sit upright, and not 
broken to pieces, I hoped, if the wind abated, I might get on 
board, and get some food and necessaries out of her for my 
relief), so, on the other hand, it renewed my grief at the loss 
of my comrades, who, I imagined, if we had all stayed on 
board, might have saved the ship, or at least, that they wpuld 
not have been all drowned, as they were; and that, had the 
men been saved, we might perhaps have built us a boat out of 
the ruins of the ship, to have carried us to some other part 
of the world. I spent great part of this day in perplexing 
myself on these things; but, at length, seeing the ship almost 
dry, I went upon the sand as near as I could, and then swam 


S 2 ROBINSON CRUSOE 

on board. This day also it continued raining, though with 
no wind at all. 

From the 1 st of October to the 2^th . — All these days en- 
tirely spent in making several voyages to get all I could out of 
the ship, which I brought on shore, every tide of flood, upon 
rafts. Much rain also, in those days, though with some in- 
tervals of fair weather; but it seems this was the rainy sea- 
son. 

October 24. — I overset my raft, and all the goods I had got 
upon it; but being in shoal water, and the things being 
chiefly heavy, I recovered many of them when the tide was 
out. 

October 25. — It rained all night and all day, with some 
gusts of wind; during which time the ship broke in pieces, 
the wind blowing a little harder than before, and was no 
more to be seen, except the wreck of her, and that only at low 
water. I spent this day in covering and securing the goods 
which I saved, that the rain might not spoil them. 

October 26. — -I walked about the shore almost all day, to 
find a place to fix my habitation, greatly concerned to 
secure myself from any attack in the night, either from wild 
beasts or men. Towards night I fixed upon a proper place, 
under a rock, and marked out a semi-circle for my encamp- 
ment, which I resolved to strengthen with a work, wall, or 
fortification, made of double piles, lined within with cables, 
and without with turf. 

From the 26th to the 30th I worked very hard in carrying 
all my goods to my new habitation, though some part of the 
time it rained exceeding hard. 

The 31st in the morning, I went out into the island with 
my gun, to seek for some food, and discover the country; 
when I killed a she-goat and her kid followed me home, 
which I afterward killed also, because it would not feed. 

November I, — I set up my tent under a rock, and lay there 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


SS 


for the first night; making it as large as I could, with stakes 
driven in to swing my hammock upon. ^ 

November 2. — I set up all my chests and boards, and the 
pieces of timber which made my rafts, and with them formed 
a fence round me, a little within the place I had marked out 
for my fortification. 

Novembe-r 3. — I went out with my gun, and killed two 
fowls like ducks, which were very good food. In the after- 
noon went to work to make me a table. 

November 4. — ^This morning I began to order my times of 
work, of going out with my gun, time of sleep, and time of 
diversion; viz., every morning I walked out with my gun for 
two or three hours, if it did not rain; then employed myself 
to work till about eleven o’clock; then ate what I had to live 
on; and from twelve to two I lay down to sleep, the weather 
being excessive hot; and then, in the evening, to work again. 
The working part of this day and the next were wholly 
employed in making this table, for I was yet but a very sorry 
workman, though time and necessity made me a complete 
natural mechanic soon after, as I believe they would do any 
one else. 

November 5. — ^This day I went abroad with my gun and 
my dog, and killed a wildcat; her skin pretty soft, but her 
flesh good for nothing; every creature I killed, I took off* the 
skins and preserved them. Coming back by the seashore, I 
saw many sorts of sea-fowls, which I did not understand; but 
was surprised, and almost frighted, with two or three seals, 
which, while I was gazing at, not well knowing what they 
were, got into the sea and escaped me for that time. 

November 6.— After my morning walk, I went to work 
with my table again, and finished it, though not to my liking; 
nor was it long before I learned to mend it. 

November 7. — Now it began to be settled fair weather. 
The 7th, 8th, 9th, loth, and part of the 12th (for the nth 


34 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


was Sunday according to my reckoning), I took wholly up to 
make me a chair, and with much ado brought it to a tolerable 
shape, but never to please me; and even in the making I 
pulled it to pieces several times. 

Note . — I soon neglected keeping Sundays; for, omitting 
my mark for them on my post, I forgot which was which. 

November 13. — This day it rained, which refreshed me ex- 
ceedingly and cooled the earth; but it was accompanied with 
terrible thunder and lightning, which frighted me dreadfully, 
for fear of my powder. As soon as it was over, I resolved to 
separate my stock of powder into as many little parcels as 
possible, that it might not be in danger. 

November 14, 15, 16. — These three days I spent in making 
little square chests or boxes, which might hold about a pound, 
or two pounds at most, of powder; and so, putting the powder 
in, I stowed it in places as secure and remote from one an- 
other as possible. On one of these three days I killed a 
large bird that was good to eat, but I knew not what to call 
it. 

November 17. — This day I began to dig behind my tent 
into the rock, to make room for my further conveniency. 

Note . — Three things I wanted exceedingly for this work: 
viz., a pickax, a shovel, and a wheelbarrow, or basket; so I 
desisted from my work, and began to consider how to supply 
that want, and make me some tools. As for the pickax, I 
made use of the iron crows, which were proper enough, 
though heavy; but the next thing was a shovel, or spade; this 
was so absolutely necessary, that, indeed, I could do nothing 
effectually without it; but what kind of one to make I knew 
not. 

November 18. — The next day in searching the woods, I 
found a tree of that wood, or like it, which, in the Brazils, 
they call the iron tree, for its exceeding hardness; of this, with 
great labor, and almost spoiling my axe, I cut a piece, and 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


S5 

brought it home, with difficulty enough, for it was exceeding 
heavy. The excessive hardness of the wood, and having no 
other way, made me a long while upon this machine, for I 
worked it effectually by little and little into the form of a 
shovel or spade. It served well enough for the uses which I 
had occasion to put it to; but never was a shovel, I believe, 
made after that fashion, or so long making. 

I was still deficient, for I wanted a basket, or a wheelbar- 
row. A basket I could not make by any means, having no 
.such things as twigs that would bend to make wicker-ware — 
at least, none yet found out; and as to the wheelbarrow, I 
fancied I could make all but the wheel; but that I had no 
notion of; neither did I know how to go about it; besides, I 
had no possible way to make iron gudgeons for the spindle or 
axis of the wheel to run in; so I gave it over, and so, for carry- 
ing away the earth which I dug out of the cave, I made me a 
thing like a hod, which the laborers carry mortar in, when 
they serve the bricklayers. This was not so difficult to me 
as the making the shovel; and yet this and the shovel, and 
the attempt which I made in vain to make a wheelbarrow, 
took me up no less than four days, I mean always excepting 
my morning’s walk with my gun, which I seldom failed, and 
very seldom failed also of bringing home something fit to eat. 

November 23. — My other work having stood still, because 
of my making these tools, when they were finished I went on, 
and working every day, as my strength and time allowed I 
spent eighteen days entirely in widening and deepening my 
cave, that it might hold my goods commodiously. 

Note - — During all this time I worked to rhake this room, 
or cave, spacious enough to accommodate me as a warehouse, 
or magazine, a kitchen, a dining-room, and a cellar. As for 
a lodging, I kept to the tent; except that sometimes in the wet 
season of the year, it rained so hard that I could not keep my- 
self dry, which caused me afterwards to cover all my place 


36 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


within my pale with long poles, in the form of rafters, leaning 
against the rock, and load them with flags and large leaves 
of trees, like a thatch. 

December lo. — I began now to think my cave or vault 
finished, when on a sudden (it seems I had made it too large), 
a great quantity of earth fell down from the top and one side; 
so much that, in short, it frighted me, and not without reason, 
too; for if I had been under it, I had never wanted a grave- 
digger. Upon this disaster I had a great deal of work to do 
over again, for I had the loose earth to carry out; and, which 
was of more importance, I had the ceiling to prop up, so that 
I might be sure no more would come down. 

December ii. — This day I went to work with it accord- 
ingly, and got two shores or posts pitched upright to the top, 
with two pieces of board across over each post; this I finished 
the next day, and setting more posts up with boards, in about 
a week more I had the roof secured; and the posts, standing 
in rows, served me for partitions to part off my house. 

December 17. — From this day to the 2Cth I placed shelves, 
and knocked up nails on the posts, to hang everything up that 
could be hung up; and now I began to be in some order 
within doors. 

December 20 . — Now I carried everything into the cave, and 
began to furnish my house, and set up some pieces of board 
like a dresser, to order my vituals upon; but board began to 
be very scarce with me; also I made me another table. 

December 24. — Much rain all night and all day; no stirring 
out. 

December 25. — Rain all day. 

December 26. — No rain, and the earth much cooler than 
before, and pleasanter. 

December 27. — Killed a young goat, and lamed another so 
that I catched it, and led it home in a string; when I had it 
at home, I bound and splintered up its leg, which was broke. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


37 


N. B . — I took such care of it that it lived, and the leg grew 
well and as strong as ever; but by nursing it so long it grew 
tame and fed upon the little green at my door, and would 
not go away. This was the first time I had entertained a 
thought of breeding up some tame creatures, that I might 
have food when my powder and shot were all spent. 

December 28, 29, 30, 31. — Great heat and no breeze, so 
that there was no stirring abroad, except in the evening, for 
food; this time I spent in putting all my things in order within 
doors. 

January i. — ^Very hot still; but I went abroad early and 
late with my gun, and lay still in the middle of the day. This 
evening, going farther into the valleys which lay towards the 
center of the island, I found there was plenty of goats, though 
exceedingly shy, and hard to come at; however, I resolved to 
try if I could not bring my dog to hunt them down. 

January 2. — Accordingly, the next day I went out with my 
dog, and set him upon the goats; but I was mistaken, for they 
all faced about upon the dog, and he knew his danger too well, 
for he would not come near them. 

January 3. — I began my fence, or wall; which, being still 
jealous of my being attacked by somebody, I resolved to 
make very thick and strong. 

N. B . — This wall being described before, I purposely omit 
what was said in the Journal; it is sufficient to observe that I 
was no less time than from the 3d of January to the 14th of 
April working, finishing, and perfecting this wall, though it 
was no more than about twenty-four yards in length, being a 
half-circle, from one place in the rock to another place, about 
eight yards from it, the door of the cave being in the center 
behind it. 

All this time I worked very hard, the rains hindering me 
many days, nay, sometimes weeks together; but I thought I 
should never be perfectly secure till this wall was finished; 


38 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


and it is scarce credible what inexpressible labor everything 
was done with, especially the bringing piles out of the woods, 
and driving them into the ground; for I made them much 
bigger than I needed to have done. 

When this wall was finished, and the outside doubled- 
fenced with a turf wall raised up close to it, I persuaded my- 
self that, if any people were to come on shore there, they would 
not perceive anything like a habitation; and it was* very well I 
did so, as may be observed hereafter, upon a very remarkable 
occasion. 

During this time I made rounds in the woods for game 
every day, when the rain permitted me, and made frequent 
discoveries in these walks, of something or other to my ad- 
vantage; particularly I found a kind of wild pigeon, which 
build, not as wood-pigeons in a tree, but rather as house- 
pigeons, in the holes of rocks; and taking some young ones, 
I endeavored to breed them up tame, and did so; but when 
they grew older they flew all away, which perhaps was at 
first for want of feeding them, for I had nothing to give them; 
however, I frequently found their nests, and got* their young 
ones, which were very good meat. 

In the managing my household alfiairs, I found myself 
wanting in many things, which I thought at first it was im- 
possible for me to make; as, indeed, to some of them it 
was: for instance, I could never make a cask to be hooped. 
I had a small runlet or two, as I observed before; but I could 
never arrive to the capacity of making one of them, though I 
spent many weeks about it; I could neither put in the heads, 
nor join the staves so true to one another as to make them 
hold water; so I gave that also over. 

In the next place, I was at a great loss for candles; so that 
as soon as it was dark, which was generally by seven o’clock, 
I was obliged to go to bed. The only remedy I had was, that 
when I had killed a goat I saved the tallow, and with a little 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


39 


dish made of clay, which I baked in the sun, to which I added 
a wick of some oakum, I made me a lamp. This gave me 
light, though not a clear, steady light like a candle. In the 
middle of all my labors it happened that, rummaging my 
things, I found a, little bag, which as I hinted before, had been 
filled with corn for the feeding of poultry. What little re- 
mainder of corn had been in the bag was all devoured by the 
rats, and I saw nothing in the bag but husks and dirt; and 
being willing to have the bag for some other use (I think it 
was to put powder in, when I divided it for fear of the light- 
ning, or some such use), I shook the husks of corn out of it on 
one side of my fortification, under the rock. 

It was a little before the great rains just now mentioned 
that I threw this stuff away, taking no notice of anything, and 
not so much as remembering that I had thrown anything 
there. 

About a month after, or thereabouts, I saw some few 
stalks of something green shooting out of the ground, which 
I fancied might be some plant I had not seen. I was sur- 
prised, and perfectly astonished when, after a little longer 
time, I saw about ten or twelve ears come out, which were 
perfect green barley, of the same kind as our own barley. 
It took me some time before it occurred to my thoughts that 
I had shaken the bag of chicken’s meat out in that place. 

It is impossible to express the astonishment and confusion 
of my thoughts on this occasion. I had hitherto acted upon 
no religious foundation at all; indeed, I had very few notions 
of religion in my head, nor had entertained any sense of any- 
thing that had befallen me, otherwise than a chance, or, as 
we lightly say, what pleases God, without so much as inquir- 
ing into the end of Providence in these things. 

I carefully saved the ears of this corn, you may be sure, in 
their season, which was about the end of June. Laying up 
every corn, I resolved to sow them all again, hoping in time 


40 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


to have some quantity sufficient to supply me with bread. 
But it was not until the fourth year that I would allow myself 
the least grain of this corn to eat, and even then but spar- 
ingly, as I shall say afterwards, in its order. I lost all that I 
sowed the first season, by not observing the proper time; for 
I sowed it just before the dry season, so that it never came up 
at all, at least not as it would have done; of which in its place. 

Besides this barley, there were, as above, twenty or thirty 
stalks of rice, which I preserved with the same care, and 
whose use was of the same kind, or to the same purpose; viz., 
to make me bread, or rather food; for I found ways to cook it 
up without baking, though I did that also after some time. 

But to return to my Journal: 

I worked excessive hard these three or four months, to get 
my wall done; and the 14th of April, I closed it up, contriving 
to go into it, not by a door, but over a wall, by a ladder, 
that there might be no sign on the outside of my habitation. 

April 16. — I finished the ladder; so I went up the ladder to 
the top, and then pulled it up after me, and let it down on the 
inside: this was a complete inclosure to me; for within I had 
room enough, and nothing could come at me from without, 
unless it could first mount my wall. 

The very next day after this wall was finished, I had almost 
had all my labors overthrown at once, and myself killed. 
The case was thus: As I was busy in the inside of it, behind 
my tent, just in the entrance into my cave, I was terribly 
frightened with a most dreadful surprising thing indeed; for 
all on a sudden, I found the earth came tumbling down from 
the roof of my cave, and from the edge of the hill over my 
head, and two of the posts I had set up in the cave cracked 
in a frightful manner. I was heartily scared; but thought 
nothing of what really was the cause, only thinking that the 
top of my cave had fallen in, as some of it had done before. 
For fear I should be buried in it, I ran forwards to my ladder, 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


41 


and not thinking myself safe there neither, I got over my 
wall for fear of the pieces of the hill, which I expected might 
roll down upon me. I was no sooner stepped down upon 
the firm ground, than I plainly saw it was a terrible earth- 
quake. The ground I stood on shook three times at about 
eight minutes’ distance, with three such shocks as would 
have overturned the strongest building that could be supposed 
to have stood upon the earth. A great piece of the top of the 
rock, which stood about half a mile from me, next the sea, 
fell down with such a terrible noise as I never heard in all my 
life. I perceived also the very sea was put into a violent 
motion by it; and I believe the shocks were stronger under 
the water than on the island. 

I was so amazed with the thing itself, having never felt the 
like, or discoursed with any one that had, that I was like one 
dead or stupefied. The motion of the earth made my stomach 
sick like one that was tossed at sea; but the noise of the 
falling of the rock awaked me, as it were, and rousing me 
from the stupefied condition I was in, filled me with horror. 
I thought of nothing then but the hill falling upon my tent 
and all my household goods, and burying all at once. This 
sunk my very soul within me a second time. 

After the third shock was over, and I felt no more for some 
time, I began to take courage; and yet I had not heart 
enough to get over my wall again, for fear of being buried 
alive, but still sat upon the ground, greatly cast down and 
disconsolate, not knowing what to do. All this while I had 
not the least serious religious thought; nothing but the 
common ‘‘Lord, have mercy upon me!” and when it was 
over, that went away too. 

While I sat thus, I found the air overcast, and it grew 
cloudy, as if it would rain. Soon after that, the wind arose 
by little and little, so that in less than half an hour it blew a 
most dreadful hurricane of wind, The sea was, all on a 


42 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


sudden, covered v^ith foam and froth. The shore was cov- 
ered with the breach of the water. The trees were torn up 
by the roots. , A terrible storm it was. This held about 
three hours and then began to abate. Then in two hours 
more it was calm, and began to rain very hard. All this 
while I sat upon the ground very much terrified and dejected. 
On a sudden it came into my thoughts, that these winds and 
rain being the consequence of the earthquake, the earthquake 
itself was spent and over, and I might venture into my cave 
again. With this thought, my spirits began to revive. The 
rain also helping to persuade me, I went in and sat down 
in my tent. The rain was so violent that my tent was ready 
to be beaten down with it; and I was forced to go into my 
cave, though very much afraid and uneasy, for fear it should 
fall on my head. This violent rain forced me to a new work; 
viz.-, to cut a hole through my new fortifications, like a sink, 
to let the water go out, which would else have drowned my 
cave. After I had been in my cave some time, and found 
still no more shocks of the earthquake follow, I began to be 
more composed. 

It continued raining all that night, and great part of the 
next day, so that I could not stir abroad; but my mind being 
more composed, I began to think of what I had best to do 
Concluding that if the island was subject to these earth- 
quakes, there would be no living for me in a cave, but I must 
consider of building me some little hut in an open place which 
I might surround with a wall, as I had done here, and so 
make myself secure from wild beasts or men. I concluded 
if I stayed where I was, I should certainly, one time or other, 
be buried alive. 

With these thoughts, I resolved to move my tent from the 
place where it now stood, which was just under the hanging 
precipice of the hill; and which, if it should be shaken again, 
would certainly fall upon my tent. I spent the two next 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


43 


days, being the 19th and 20th of April, in contriving where 
and how to remove my habitation. The fear of being swal- 
lowed up alive made me that I never slept in quiet. Yet the 
apprehensions of lying abroad without any fence were almost 
equal to it. Still, when I looked about, and saw how every- 
thing was put in order, how pleas-antly concealed I was, and 
how safe from danger, it made me loath to remove. In the 
meantime it occurred to me that it would require a vast deal 
of time for me to do this, and that I must be contented to run 
the venture where I was, till I had formed a camp for my- 
self, and had secured it so as to remove to it. So with this 
resolution I composed myself for a time, and resolved that I 
would go to work with all speed to build me a wall with 
piles and cables, etc., in a circle, as before, and set my tent 
up in it, when it was finished ; but that I would venture to stay 
where I was till it was finished, and fit to remove to. This 
was the 21st. 

April 22. — The next morning I began to consider of means 
to put this resolve in execution; but I was at a great loss 
about my tools. I had three large axes, and abundance of 
hatchets (for we carried the hatchets for traffic with the 
Indians); but with much chopping and cutting knotty hard 
wood, they were all full of notches, and dull; and though I 
had a grindstone, I could not turn it and grind my tools too. 
This caused me as much thought as a statesman would have 
bestowed upon a grand point of politics, or judge upon the 
life and death of a man. At length I contrived a wheel with 
a string, to turn it with my foot, that I might have both my 
hands at liberty. 

April 28, 29. — These two whole days I took up in grinding 
my tools, my machine for turning my grindstone performing 
very well. 

April 30. — Having perceived my bread had been low 
a great while, I now took, a survey of it, and reduced my- 


44 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


self to one biscuit-cake a day, which made my heart very 
heavy. 

May I. — In the morning, looking towards the seaside, the 
tide being low, I saw something lie on the shore bigger than 
ordinary, and it looked like a cask; when I came to it, I found 
a small barrel, and two or three pieces of the wreck of the 
ship, which were driven on shore by the late hurricane; and 
looking towards the wreck itself, I thought it seemed to lie 
higher out of the water than it used to do. I examined the 
barrel which was driven on shore, and soon found is was a 
barrel of gunpowder; but it had taken water, and the powder 
was caked as hard as a stone: however, I rolled it farther on 
shore for the present, and went on upon the sand, as near 
as I could to the wreck of the ship, to look for more. 

When I came down to the ship, I found it strangely re- 
moved. The forecastle, which lay before buried in sand, 
was heaved up at least six feet, and the stern, which was 
broken to pieces and parted from the rest by the force of the 
sea soon after I had left rummaging her, was tossed, as it 
were, up, and cast on one side. The sand was thrown so 
high on that side next the stern, that whereas there was a 
great place of water before, so that I could not come within a 
quarter of a mile of the wreck without swimming, I could 
now walk quite up to her when the tide was out. I was sur- 
prised with this at first, but soon concluded it must be done 
by the earthquake. As by this violence the ship was more 
broken open than formerly, so many things came daily on 
shore, which the sea had loosened, and which the winds and 
water rolled by degrees to the land. 

This wholly diverted my thoughts from the design of re- 
moving my habitation and I busied myself mightily, that day 
especially, in searching whether I could make any way into 
the ship. I found nothing was to be expected of that kind, 
for that all the inside of the ship was choked up with sand. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


45 


However, as I had learned not to despair of anything, I 
resolved to pull everything to pieces that I could of the ship, 
concluding that everything I could get from her would be of 
some use or other to me. 

May 3. — I began with my saw, and cut a piece of a beam 
through, which held some of the upper part or quarter-deck 
together, and when I had cut it through, I cleared away the 
sand as well as I could from the side which lay highest. 
The tide coming in, I was obliged to give over for that time. 

May 4. — I went a-fishing, but caught not one fish that I 
durst eat of, till I was weary of my sport; when, just going 
to leave off, I caught a young dolphin. I had m^ade me a 
long line of some rope-yarn, but I had no hecks; yet I fre- 
quently caught fish enough, as much as I cared to eat; all 
which I dried in the sun, and ate them dry. 

May 5. — Worked on the wreck; cut another beam asunder, 
and brought three great fire planks off from the decks, which 
I tied together, and made sv/im on shore when the tide of 
flood came on. 

May 6. — ^Worked on the wreck; got several iron bolts out 
of her, and other pieces of iron-work; worked very hard, and 
came home very much tired, and had thoughts of giving it 
over. 

May 7. — ^Went to the wreck again, with an intent not to 
work, but found the weight of the wreck had broken itself 
down, the beams being cut; that several pieces of th^ ship 
seemed to lie loose, and the inside of the hold lay so open that 
I could see into it; but it was almost full of water and sand. 

May 8. — ^Went to the wreck, and carried an iron crow to 
wrench up the deck, which lay now quite clear of the water 
or sand. I wrenched open two planks, and brought them on 
shore also with the tide. I. left the iron crow in the wreck 
for next day. 

May 9. — ^Went to the wreck, and with crow made way 


46 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


into the body of the wreck, and felt several casks, and loos- 
ened them with the crow, but could not break them up. I 
felt also a roll of English lead, and could stir it, but it was too 
heavy to move. 

May 10, II, 12, 13, 14. — Went every day to the wreck; 
and got a great deal of pieces of timber, and boards, or 
planks, and two or three hundredweight of iron. 

May 15. — I carried two hatchets, to try if I could not cut 
a piece off the roll of lead, by placing the edge of one hatchet, 
and driving it with the other; but as it lay about a foot and a 
half out of the water, I could not make any blow to drive 
the hatchet. 

May 16. — It had blown hard in the night, and the wreck 
appeared more broken by the force of the water; but I stayed 
so long in the woods, to get pigeons for food, that the tide 
prevented me going to the wreck that day. 

May 17. — 1 saw some pieces of the wreck blown on shore, 
at a great distance, near two miles off me, but resolved to 
see what they were, and found they were pieces of the head, 
but too heavy for me to bring away. 

May 24. — Every day, to this day, I worked on the wreck; 
and with hard labor I loosened some things so much with the 
crow that the first flowing tide several casks floated out, and 
two of the seamen’s chests; but the wind blowing from the 
shore nothing came to land that day but pieces of timber, and 
a hogshead which had some Brazil pork in it; but the salt 
water and the sand had spoiled it. I continued this work 
every day to the 15th of June, except the time necessary to 
get food, which I always appointed, during this part of my 
employment, to be when the tide was up, that I might be 
ready when it was ebbed out; and by this time I had gotten 
timber, and plank, and iron-work enough to have built a good 
boat, if I had known how; and also I got, at several times. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


47 


and in several pieces, near one hundredweight of the sheet 
lead. 

June i6. — Going down to the seaside, I found a large 
tortoise, or turtle. This was the first I had seen, which, it 
seems, was only my misfortune, not any defect of the place 
or the scarcity; for had I happened to be on the other side of 
the island, I might have had hundreds of them every day, 
as I found afterwards; but perhaps had paid dear enough 
for them. 

June 17 . — 1 spent in cooking the turtle. I found in her 
threescore eggs; and her flesh was to me, at that time, the 
most savory and pleasant that ever I tasted in my life, having 
had no flesh but of goats and fowls, since I landed in this 
horrible place. 

June 18. — Rained all the day, and I stayed within. I 
thought, at ‘this time, the rain felt cold, and I was something 
chilly, which I knew was not usual in that latitude. 

June 19. — Very ill, and shivering, as if the weather had 
been cold. 

June 20. — No rest all night; violent pains in my head, and 
feverish. 

June 21. — Very ill; frighted almost to death with the ap- 
prehensions of my sad condition — to be sick, and no help. 
Prayed to God, for the first time since the storm oflF of Hull, 
but scarce knew what I said or why; my thoughts being all 
confused. 

June 22. — A little better; but under dreadful apprehen- 
sions of sickness. 

June 23. — Very bad again; cold and shivering, and then 
a violent headache. 

June 24. — Much better. 

June 25. — An ague very violent: the fit held me seven 
hours; cold fit, and hot with faint sweats after it. 

June 26. — Better; and having no victuals to eat, took my 


48 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


gun, but found myself very weak; however, I killed a she- 
goat, and with much difficulty got it home, and broiled some 
of it and ate. I would fain have stewed it, and made some 
broth, but had no pot. 

June 2 ^. — ^The ague again so violent that I lay a-bed all 
day, and neither ate nor drank. I was ready to perish for 
thirst; but so weak I had no strength to stand up, or to get 
myself any water to drink. Prayed to God again, but was 
light-headed; and when I was not, I was so ignorant that I 
knew not what to say; only I lay and cried, “ Lord, look upon 
me! Lord, pity me! Lord, have mercy upon me!’’ I sup- 
pose I did nothing else for two or three hours; till the fit 
wearing off, I fell asleep, and did not awake till far in the night. 
When I awoke, I found myself much refreshed, but weak, 
and exceeding thirsty. As I had no water in my whole 
habitation, I was forced to lie till morning, and went to sleep 
again. In this second sleep I had a terrible dream. I 
thought that I was sitting on the ground, on the outside of 
my wall, where I sat when the storm blew after the earth- 
quake, and that I saw a man descend from a great black 
cloud, in a bright flame of fire, and light upon the ground: he 
was all over as bright as a flame, so that I could but just bear 
to look towards him. His countenance was most inexpressi- 
bly dreadful, impossible for words to describe. When he 
stepped upon the ground with his feet, I thought the earth 
trembled, just as it had done before in the earthquake, and 
all the air looked, to my apprehension, as if it had been filled 
with flashes of fire. 

He had no sooner landed upon the earth, but he moved 
forwards towards me with a long spear or weapon in his hand 
to kill me. When he came to a rising ground, at some dis- 
tance, he spoke to me — or I heard a voice so terrible that it is 
impossible to express the terror of it. All that I can say I 
understood was this ‘‘Seeing all thesethings have not brought 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


49 


thee, to repentance now thou shalt die;’’ — at which words, I 
thought he lifted up the spear that was in his hand to kill me. 

No one that shall ever read this account will expect that I 
should be able to describe the horrors of my soul at this ter- 
rible vision. I mean, that even while it was a dream, I even 
dreamed of those horrors. Nor is it any more possible to de- 
scribe the impression that remained upon my mind when I 
awaked, and found it was but a dream. 

June 28. — Having been somewhat refreshed with the sleep 
I had had, and the fit being entirely off, I got up. Though 
the fright and terror of my dream was very great, yet I con- 
sidered that the fit of the ague would return again the next 
day, and now was my time to get something to refresh and 
support myself when I should be ill. The first thing I did, 
I filled a large square case bottle with water, and set it upon 
my table, in reach of my bed. To take off the chill or aguish 
disposition of the water, I put about a quarter of a pint of 
rum into it, and mixed them together. Then I got me a piece 
of the goat’s flesh, and broiled it on the coals, but could eat 
very little. I walked about, but was very v^eak, and withal 
very sad and heavy-hearted in the sense of my miserable 
condition, dreading the return of my distemper the next day. 
At night, I made my supper of three of the turtle’s eggs, 
which I roasted in the ashes, and eat, as we call it, in the 
shell, and this was the first bit of meat 1 had ever asked 
God’s blessing to, even as I could remember, in my whole life. 

After I had eaten„ I tried to walk, but found myself so 
weak that I could hardly carry the gun, ^or I never went out 
without that; so I went out but a little way, and then returned 
to my retreat. I had no inclination to sleep: so I sat down in 
my chair and lighted my lamp, for it began to be dark. I 
looked about for something to read and brought to the table 
one of the Bibles which I mentioned before, and which to 
this time I had not found leisure, or so much as inclination, 


50 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


to look into. Having opened the Bible casually, the -words 
first that occurred to me were these, “Call upon me in the 
day of trouble, and I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify 
me.’’ These words were very apt to my case, and made 
some impression upon my thoughts at the time of reading 
them, though not so much as they did afterwards; for, as for 
being delivered, the word had no sound, as I may say, to me, 
the thing was so remote, so impossible in my apprehension 
of things, that I began to say, as the children of Israel did 
when they were promised flesh to eat, “Can God spread a 
table in the wilderness.^” So I began to say, “Can God 
himself deliver me from this place And as it was not for 
many years that any hopes appeared, this prevailed very 
often upon my thoughts; but, however, the words made a 
great impression upon me, and I mused upon them very 
often. It grew now late, amd .1 inclined to sleep. I left my 
lamp burning in the cave, lest I should want anything in the 
night, and went to bed. But before I lay down, I did -what I 
never had done in all my life; I kneeled down, and prayed to 
God to fulfill the promise to me, that if I called upon him in 
the day of trouble, he would deliver me. After my broken 
and imperfect prayer was over, I went to bed; and presently 
fell into a sound sleep, and waked no more till, by the sun, it 
must necessarily be near three o’clock in the afternoon the 
next day. Nay, to this hour I am partly of opinion that I 
slept all the next day and night, and till almost three the day 
after. Otherwise I know n*ot how I should lose a day out of 
my reckoning in the days of the week, as it appeared some 
years after I had done. — If I had lost it by crossing and re- 
crossing the line, I should have lost more than one day; but 
in my account it was lost, and I never knew which way. Be 
that, however, one way or other, when I awaked I found my- 
self exceedingly refreshed, and my spirits lively and cheerful. 
When I got up I was stronger than I was the day before, and 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


51 


my stomach better, for I was hungry. In short, I had no fit 
the next day, but continued much altered for the better. 
This was the 29th. 

The was my well day of course, and I went abroad 
with my gun, but did not care to travel too far. I killed a 
sea-fowl or two, something like a brand goose, and brought 
them home; but was not very forward to eat them, so I eat 
some more of the turtle’s eggs, which were very good. 

July 3. I missed the fit for good and all, though I did not 
recover my full strength for some weeks after. 

From the 4th of July to the 14th, I was chiefly employed 
i n walking about with my gun in my hand, a little and a 
little at a time, as a man that was gathering up his strength 
after a fit of sickness; for it is hardly to be imagined how low 
I was, and to what weakness I was reduced. 

I had now been in this unhappy island above ten months. 
All possibility of deliverance from this condition seemed to be 
entirely taken from me. I firmly believed that no human 
shape had ever set foot upon that place. Having now 
secured my habitation, as I thought, fully to my mind, I had 
a great desire to make a more perfect discovery of the island, 
and to see what other productions I might find, which yet I 
knew nothing of. 

Ft was the 15th of July that I began to take a more par- 
ticular survey of the island itself. I went up the creek first, 
where, as I hinted, I brought my rafts on shore. I found, 
after I came about two miles up, that the tide did not flow 
any higher; and that was no more than a little brook of 
running water, and very fresh and good; but this being the 
dry season, there was hardly any water in some parts of it; at 
least, not enough to run in any stream, so as it could be per- 
ceived. On the banks of this brook, I found many pleasant 
savannas of meadows, plain, smooth, and covered with 
grass. On the rising parts of them, next to the higher 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


grounds, where the water, as it might be supposed, never 
overflowed I found a great deal of tobacco, green, and grow- 
ing to a great and very strong stalk; there were divers other 
plants, which I had no notion of or understanding about, and 
might, perhaps, have virtues of their own, which I could not 
find out. I searched for the cassava root, which the Indians 
in all that climate make their bread of, but I could find none. 
I saw large plants of aloes, but did not then understand them. 
I saw several sugar-canes, but wild, and for want of cultiva- 
tion imperfect. I contented myself with these discoveries 
for this time, and came back, musing with myself what 
course I might take to know the virtue and goodness of any 
of the fruits of plants which I should discover; but could 
bring it to no conclusion. 

The next day, the i6th, I went up the same way again; and 
after going something further than I had gone the day before, 
I found the brook and savannas cease, and the country be- 
came more woody than before. In this part I found different 
fruits, and particularly I found melons upon the ground, in 
great abundance; and grapes upon the trees. The vines had 
spread indeed over the trees, and the clusters of grapes were 
j ust now in their prime, very ripe and rich. This was a sur- 
prising discovery, and I was exceeding glad of them. I 
f ound an excellent use for these grapes; and that was to cure 
or dry them in the sun, and keep them as dried grapes or 
raisins are kept, which I thought would be, as indeed they 
were, as wholesome and agreeable to eat, when no grapes 
might be had. 

I spent all that evening there, and went not back to my 
habitation, which, by the way, was the first night, as I might 
say, I had lain from home. In jthe night I took my first 
contrivance, and got up into a tree, where I slept well. The 
next morning I proceeded upon my discovery, traveling 
nearly four miles, as I might judge by the length of the valley, 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


53 


keeping still due' north, with a ridge of hills on the south and 
north side of me. At the end of this march I came to an 
opening, where the country seemed to descend to the west. 
A little spring of fresh water, which issued out of the side of the 
hill by me, ran the other way, that is, due east. The country 
appeared so fresh, so green, so flourishing, everything being 
in a constant verdure, or flourish of spring, that it looked like 
a planted garden. I descended a little on the side of that 
delicious valley, surveying it with a secret kind of pleasure, 
though mixed with other afflicting thoughts, to think that 
this was all my own; that I was king and lord of all this 
country indefeasibly, and had a right of possession; and, if 
I could convey it, I might have it in inheritance as com- 
pletely as any lord of a manor in England. I saw here 
abundance of cocoa trees, orange and lemon and citron trees; 
but all wild, and few bearing any fruit, at least not then. 
However, the green limes that I gathered were not only 
pleasant to eat, but very wholesome. I mixed their juice 
afterwards with water, which made it very wholesome; and 
very cool and refreshing. I found now I had business 
enough to gather and carry home; and I resolved to lay up a 
store, as well of grapes as limes and lemons, to furnish my- 
self for the wet season, which I knew was approaching. In 
order to do this, I gathered a great heap of grapes in one place, 
a lesser heap in another place, and a great parcel of limes 
and lemons in another place; and taking a few of each with 
me, I traveled homeward, and resolved to come again, and 
bring a bag or sack, or what I could make to carry the rest 
home. Accordingly having spent three days in this journey, 
I came home (so I must now call my tent and my cave). 
Before I got thither, the grapes were spoiled; the richness of 
the fruit, and the weight of the juice, having broken them 
and bruised them, they were good for little or nothing. As 
to the limes, they were good, but I could bring but a few. 


54 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


The next day, being the 19th, I went back, having made 
me two small bags to bring home my harvest. I was sur- 
prised when, coming to my heap of grapes, which were so 
rich and fine when I gathered them, I found them all spread 
abroad, trodden to pieces, and dragged about, some here, 
some there, and abundance eaten and devoured. By this 
I concluded there were some wild creatures thereabouts 
which had done this; but what they were I knew not. How- 
ever, as I found there was no laying them up in heaps, and 
no carrying them away in a sack, but that one way they 
would be destroyed, and the other way they would be crushed 
with their own weight, I took another course. I gathered a 
large quantity of the grapes, and hung them upon the out 
branches of the trees, that they might cure and dry in the 
sun. As for the limes and lemons, I carried as many back as 
I could well stand under. 

When I came home from this journey, I contemplated 
with great pleasure the fruitfulness of that valley and the 
pleasantness of the situation; the security from storm on that 
side of the water, and the wood; and concluded that I had 
pitched upon a place to fix my abode, which was by far the 
worst part of the country. Upon the whole I began to con- 
sider of removing my habitation, and to look out for a place 
equally safe as where now I was situated, if possible, in that 
pleasant, fruitful, part of the island. 

This thought ran long in my head, and I was exceeding 
f ond of it for some time, the pleasantness of the place tempt- 
i ng me. But when I came to a nearer view of it, I considered 
that I was now by the seaside, where it was at least possible 
that something might happen to my advantage; and that the 
same ill fate that brought me hither, might bring some other 
unhappy wretches to the same place. Though it was scarce 
probable that any such thing should ever happen, yet to 
inclose myself among the hills and woods in the center of the 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


55 


island, was to anticipate my bondage, and to render such an 
affair not only improbable, but impossible. Therefore I 
ought not by any means to remove. However, I was so 
enamored with this place that I spent much of my time there 
for the whole remaining part of the month of July. Though, 
upon second thoughts, I resolved as above not to remove, 
yet I built me a little kind of bower, and surrounded it at a 
distance with a strong fence, being a double hedge, as high as 
I could reach, well staked, and filled between with brush- 
wood. Here I lay very secure, sometimes two or three 
nights together, always going over it with a ladder as before. 
I fancied now I had my country house and my seacoast 
house. This work took me up to the beginning of August. 

I had but newly finished my fence, and began to enjoy my 
labor, but the rains came on, and made me stick close to my 
first habitation. Though I had made me a tent like the 
other, with a piece of a sail, and spread it very well, yet I had 
not the shelter of a hill to keep me from storms, nor a cave 
behind me to retreat into when the rains were extraordinary. 

About the beginning of August, as I said, I had finished 
my bower and began to enjoy myself. The 3d of August, I 
found the grapes I had hung up were perfectly dry, and in- 
deed were excellent good raisins of the sun. So I began to 
take them down from the trees, and it was very happy that I 
did so, for the rains which followed would have spoiled 
them, and I had lost the best part of my winter food. I had 
above two hundred large bunches of them. No sooner had I 
taken them all down, and carried most of them home to my 
cave, but it began to rain. From hence, which was the 14th 
of August, it rained, more or less, every day till the middle of 
October, and sometimes so violently that I could not stir out 
of my cave for several days. 

In this season I was much surprised with the increase of 
my family^ I had been concerned for the loss of one of my 


56 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


cats, who ran away from me, or, as I thought, had been dead, 
and I heard no more tidings of her, till, to my astonishment, 
she came home about the end of August, with three kittens. 
This was the more strange to me, because, though I had 
killed a wildcat, as I called it, with my gun, yet I thought it 
was a quite different kind from our European cats; but the 
young cats were the same kind of house breed as the old one, 
and both my cats being females, I thought it very strange. 
But from these three cats I afterwards came to be so pestered 
with cats that I was forced to kill them like vermin or wild 
beasts, and to drive them from my house as much as possible. 

From the 14th of August to the 26th, incessant rain, so that 
I could not stir, and was now very careful not to be much 
wet. In this confinement, I began to be straightened for 
food; but venturing out twice, I one day killed a goat; and 
the last day, which was the 26th, found a very large tortoise, 
which was a treat to me, and my food was regulated thus: I 
ate a bunch of raisins for my breakfast; a piece of the goat’s 
flesh, or of the turtle, for my dinner, broiled (for to my great 
misfortune, I had no vessel to boil or stew anything), and 
two or three of the turtle’s eggs for supper. 

During this confinement in my cover by the rain, I worked 
daily two or three hours at enlarging my cave, and by degrees 
worked it on towards one side, till I came to the outside of 
the hill, and made a door or way out, which came beyond 
my fence or wall; and so I came in and out this way. But 
I was not perfectly easy at lying so open; for, as I had man- 
aged myself before, I was in a perfect inclosure; whereas now, 
I thought, I lay exposed, and yet I could not perceive that 
there was any living thing to fear; the biggest creature that I 
had yet seen upon the island being a goat. 

September 30.— I was now come to the unhappy anniver- 
sary of my landing. I cast up the notches on my post, and 
found I had been on shore three hundred and sixty-five days. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


57 


I kept this day as a solemn fast, setting it apart for religious 
exercise, prostrating myself on the ground with the most 
serious humiliation, confessing my sins to God, acknow- 
ledging his righteous judgment upon me, and praying to 
him to have mercy on me. Having not tasted the least 
refreshment for twelve hours, even till the going down of 
the sun, I then ate a biscuit-cake and a bunch of grapes, 
and went to bed, finishing the day as I began it. A little 
after this my ink began to fail me, and so I contented myself 
to use it more sparingly, and to write down only the most 
remarkable events of my life, without continuing a daily 
memorandum of other things. 

The rainy season and the dry season began now to appear 
regular to me, and I learned to divide them so as to provide 
for them accordingly; but I bought all my experience 
before I had it, and this I am going to relate was one of the 
most discouraging experiments that I made at all. 

I have mentioned that I had saved the few ears of barley 
and rice which I had so surprisingly found spring up, as I 
thought, of themselves. I believe there were about thirty 
stalks of rice and about twenty of barley. Now I thought it 
a proper time to sow it, after the rains, the sun being in his 
southern position, going from me. Accordingly, I dug up 
a piece of ground as well as I could with my wooden spade, 
and dividing it into two parts, I sowed my grain. As I was 
sowing it, if casually occurred to my thoughts that I would 
not sow it all at first, because I did not know when was the 
proper time for it, so I sowed about two-thirds of the seed, 
leaving about a handful of each. It was a great comfort 
to me afterwards that I did so, for not one grain of that I 
sowed this time came to anything; for the dry months 
following, the earth having had no rain after the seed was 
sown, it had no moisture to assist its growth, and never 
came up at all till the wet season had come again, and then 


58 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


it grew as if it had been newly sown. Poinding my first seed 
did not grow, which I easily imagined was by the drought, 
I sought for a moister piece of ground to make another 
trial in, and I dug up a piece of ground near my new bower, 
and sowed the rest of my seed in February, a little before the 
vernal equinox; and this having the rainy months of March 
and April to water it, sprang up very pleasantly, and yielded 
a very good crop. Having part of the seed left only, and 
not daring to sow all that I had got, I had but a small quan- 
tity at last, my whole crop not amounting to above half a 
peck of each kind. But by this experiment I was made 
master of my business, and knew exactly when the proper 
season was to sow, and that I might expect two seed-times 
and two harvests every year. While this corn was growing 
I made a little discovery, which was of use to me afterwards. 
As soon as the rains were over, and the weather began to 
settle, which was about the month of November, I made a 
visit up the country to my bower, where, though I had not 
been some months I found all things just as I left them. 
The circle or double hedge that I had made was not only 
firm and entire, but the stakes which I had cut off of some 
trees that grew thereabouts were all shot out and grown with 
long branches, as much as a willow-tree usually shoots the 
first year after lopping its head. I could not tell what 
tree to call it that these stakes were cut from. I was sur- 
prised, and yet very well pleased, to see the -young trees 
grow. I pruned them, and led them up to grow as much 
alike as I could. It is scarcely credible how beautiful a 
figure they grew into in three years; so that though the 
hedge made a circle of about twenty-five yards in diameter, 
yet the trees, for such I might now call them, soon covered 
it, and it was a complete shade, sufficient to lodge under 
all the dry season. This made me resolve to cut some 
more stakes and make me a hedge like this, in a semicircle 


. ROBINSON CRUSOE 


59 


round my wall (I mean that of my first dwelling), which I 
did. Placing the trees or stakes in a double row, at about 
eight yards distance from my first fence, they grew presently, 
and were at first a fine cover to my habitation, and after- 
wards served for a defense also, as I shall observe in its 
order. 

I found now that the seasons of the* year might generally 
be divided, not into summer and winter, but into the rainy 
seasons, and the dry seasons which were generally thus: 

The half of February, the whole of March, and the half 
of April — rainy, the sun being then on or near the equinox. 

The half of April, the whole of May, June, and July, 
and the half of August — dry, the sun being then to the 
north of the line. 

The half of August, the whole of September, and the 
half of October — rainy, the sun being then come back. 

The half of October, the whole of November, December, 
and January, and the half of February — -dry, the sun being 
then to the south of the line. 

The rainy seasons sometimes held longer or shorter as the 
winds happened to blow, but this was the general observa- 
tion I made. After I had found, by experience, the ill 
consequence of being abroad in the rain, I took care to 
furnish myself with provisions beforehand, that I mighty 
not be obliged to go out, and I sat within doors as much as 
possible during the wet months. 

In this time I found much employment, and very suitable 
also to the time, for I found great occasion of many things 
which I had no way to furnish myself with but by hard 
labor and constant application. Particularly, I tried many 
ways to make myself a basket, but all the twigs I could 
get for the purpose proved so brittle that they would do 
nothing. It proved of excellent advantage to me now that 
when I was a boy, I used to take great delight in standing 


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at a basket-maker’s, in the town where my father lived, to 
see them make their wickerware. Being, as boys usually 
are, very officious to help, and a great observer of the manner 
how they worked those things, and sometimes lent a hand, 
I had by this means so full knowledge of the methods of it, 
that I wanted nothing, but the materials. When it came 
into my mind that the twigs of that tree from whence I cut 
my stakes that grew, might possibly be as tough as the 
sallows, willows, and osiers in England, and I resolved to 
try. Accordingly, the next day I went to my country 
house, as I called it, and cutting some of the smaller twigs, 
I found them to my purpose as much as I could desire j 
whereupon I came the next time prepared with a hatchet 
to cut down a quantity, which I soon found, for there was 
a great plenty of them. These I set up to dry, within my 
circle or hedges, and when they were fit to use, I carried 
them to my cave. Here, during the next season, I em- 
ployed myself in making, as well as I could, a great many 
baskets, both to carry earth or to carry or lay up anything, 
as I had occasion. Though I did not finish them very 
handsomely, yet I made them sufficiently serviceable for 
my purpose. Afterwards, I took care never to be without 
them. As my wickerware decayed, I made more, especially 
strong, deep baskets to place my corn in, instead of sacks, 
when I should come to have any quantity of it. 

Having mastered this difficulty, and employed a world of 
time about it, I bestirred myself to see, if possible, how to 
supply another want. I had no vessel to hold anything 
that was liquid, except two runlets, which were almost full 
of rum, and some glass bottles — some of the common size, 
and others which were case-bottles, square, for the holding 
of water, spirits, etc. I had not so much as a pot to boil 
anything in, except a great kettle, which I saved out of the 
ship, and which was too big for such uses as I desired it 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


61 


for — viz., to make broth, and stew a bit of meat by it- 
self. 

I employed myself in planting my second row of stakes 
or piles, and in this wickerwork, all the summer or dry 
season, when another business took me up more time than 
it could be imagined I could spare. 

I mentioned before that I had a great mind to see the 
whole island, and that I had traveled up the brook, and so 
on to where I built my bower, and where I had an opening 
quite to the sea, on the other side of the island. I now 
resolved to travel quite across to the seashore on that side. 
So, taking my gun, a hatchet, and my dog, and a larger 
quantity of powder and shot than usual, with* two biscuit- 
cakes and a great bunch of raisins in my pouch for my store, 
I began my journey. When I had passed the vale where 
my bower stood, as above, I came within view of the sea 
to the west, and it being a very clear day, fairly descried 
land — whether an island or a continent I could not tell; 
but it lay very high, extending from the W. to the W.S.W., 
at a very great distance; by my guess, it could not be less 
than fifteen or twenty leagues off. 

I could not tell what part of the world this might be, 
otherwise than that I knew it must be part of America, 
and, as I concluded, by all my observations, must be near 
the Spanish dominions, and perhaps was all inhabited by 
savages, where,, if I should have landed, I had been in a 
worse condition than I was now. Therefore I acquiesced 
in the dispositions of Providence, which I began now to 
own and to believe ordered everything for the best. I say 
I quieted my mind with this, and left afflicting myself with 
fruitless wishes of being there. 

Besides, after some pause upon this affair, I considered 
that if this land was the Spanish coast, I should certainly, 
one time or other, see some vessel pass or repass one way 


62 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


or other; but if not, then it was the savage coast between 
the Spanish country and the Brazils, which were indeed 
the worst of savages; for they are cannibals, and fail not 
to murder and devour all the human bodies that fall into 
their hands. 

With these considerations, I walked very leisurely for- 
ward. I found that side of the island where I now was much 
pleasanter than mine — the open savanna fields sweet, 
adorned with flowers and grass, and full of very fine woods. 
I saw abundance of parrots, and fain would I have caught 
one, if possible, to have kept it to be tame, and taught it to 
speak to me. I did, after some painstaking, catch a young 
parrot, for I knocked it down with a stick, and having re- 
covered it, I brought it home. It was some years before 
I could make him speak. However, at last, I taught him 
to call me by my name very familiarly. But the accident that 
followed, though it be a trifle, will be very diverting in its 
place. 

As soon as I came to the seashore I was surprised to see 
that I had taken up my lot on the worst side of the island, 
for here, indeed, the shore was covered with innumerable 
turtles, whereas on the other side I had found but three in 
a year and a half. Here was also an infinite number of 
fowls of many kinds, some of which I had not seen before, 
and many of them very good meat, but such as I knew not 
the names of, except those called penguins. 

I could have shot as many as I pleased, but was very 
sparing of my powder and shot, and I therefore had more 
mind to kill a she-goat, if I could, which I could better 
feed on. Though there were many goats here, more than 
on the other side of the island, yet it was with much more 
difficulty that I could come near them, the country being 
flat and even, and they saw me much sooner than when I 
was on the hills. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


63 


I confess this side of the country was much pleasanter 
than mine. But yet T had not the least inclination to re- 
move. As I was fixed in my habitation it became natural 
to me, and I seemed all the while I was here to be as it were 
upon a journey, and from home. However, I traveled 
along the shore of the sea toward the east, I suppose, about 
twelve miles, and then setting up a great pole upon the 
shore for a mark, I concluded I would go home again, 
and that the next journey I took should be on the other 
side of the island east from my dwelling, and so round till 
I came to my post again, of which in its place. 

I took another way to come back than that I went, think- 
ing I could easily keep all the island so much in my view 
that I could not miss finding my first dwelling by viewing 
the country. I found myself mistaken, for, being come 
about two or three miles, I found myself descended into a 
very large valley, but so surrounded with hills, and those 
hills covered with wood, that I could not see which was 
my way by any direction but that of the sun, nor even then, 
unless I knew very well the position of the sun at the time of 
the day. It happened, to my further misfortune, that the 
weather proved hazy for three or four days while I was in 
this valley, and not being able to see the sun, I wandered 
about very uncomfortable, and at last was obliged to find 
out the seaside, look for my post, and come back the same 
way I went. Then, by easy journeys, I turned homeward’ 
the weather being exceeding hot, and my gun, ammunition, 
hatchet, and other things, very heavy. 

In this journey my dog surprised a young kid, and seized 
upon it, and I running in to take hold of it, caught it, and 
saved it alive from the dog. I had a great mind to bring 
it home if I could, for I had often been musing whether it 
might not be possible to get a kid or two, and so raise a 
breed of tame goats, which might supply me when my powder 


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and shot should be spent. I made a collar to this little 
creature, and with a string, .which I made of some rope- 
yarn which I always carried about me, I led him along, 
though with some difficulty, till I came to my bower, and 
there I enclosed him and left him, for I was very impatient 
to be .at home, from whence I had been absent above a 
month. 


I cannot express what a satisfaction it was to me to come 
into my old hutch, and lie down in my hammock-bed. 
This little wandering journey, without settled place of abode, 
had been so unpleasant to me that my own house, as I called 
it to myself, was a perfect settlement to me, compared to 
that. It rendered everything about me so comfortable, 
that I resolved I would never go a great way from it again, 
while it should be my lot to stay on the island. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


65 


I reposed myself here a week, to rest and regale myself 
after my long journey; during which, most of the time 
was taken up in the weighty affair of making a cage for my 
Poll, who began now to be a mere domestic, and to be 
mighty well acquainted with me. Then I began to think 
of the poor kid which I had pent in within my little circle, 
and resolved to go and fetch it home, or give it some food. 
Accordingly I went, and found it where I left it. It could 
not get out and was almost starved for want of food. I 
went and cut boughs of trees, and branches of such shrubs 
as I could find, and threw them over, and having fed it, 
I tied it as I did before, to lead it away. It was so tame 
with being hungry, that I. had no need to have tied it, for 
it followed me like a dog. As I continually fed it, the 
creature became so loving, so gentle, and so fond, that it 
became from that time one of my domestics also, and 
would never leave me afterwards. 

The rainy season of the autumnal equinox was now come, 
and I kept the 30th of September in the same solemn man- 
ner as before, being the anniversary of my landing on the 
island, having now been there two years, and no more 
prospect of being delivered than the first day I came there. 
I spent the whole day in humble and thankful acknow- 
ledgments of the many wonderful mercies which my solitary 
condition was attended with, and without which it might 
have been infinitely more miserable. 

Now I read the Word of God every day, and applied all 
the comforts of it to my present state. One morning, 
being very sad, I opened the Bible upon these words, “I 
will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’’ Immediately it 
occurred what these words were to me; why else should they 
be directed in such a manner, just at the moment when I 
was mourning over my condition, as one forsaken of God 
and man? '‘Well, then,” said I, “if God does not forsake 


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ROBINSON CRUSOE 


me, of what ill consequence can it be, or what matters it, 
though the world should all forsake me, seeing on the other 
hand, if I had all the world, and should lose the favor and 
blessing of God, there would be no comparison in the loss 

I have not given the reader the trouble of so particular 
an account of my works this year as the first. In general 
it may be observed that I was very seldom idle, but having 
regularly divided my time according to several daily employ- 
ments that were before me, such as, first, my duty to God, 
and the reading the Scriptures, which I constantly set apart 
some time for, thrice every day; secondly, the going abroad 
with my gun for food, which generally took up three hours 
in every morning, when it did not rain; thirdly, the ordering, 
curing, preserving, and cooking what I had killed or caught 
for my supply. These took up great part of the day. Also, 
it is to be considered, that in the middle of the day, when 
the sun was in the zenith, the violence of the heat was too 
great to stir out. About four hours in the evening was all 
the time I could be supposed to work in, with this exception, 
that sometimes I changed my hours of hunting and working, 
and went to work in the morning, and abroad with rriy 
gun in the afternoon. 

To this short time allowed for labor, I desire may be 
added the exceeding laboriousness of my work; the many 
hours which for want of tools, want of help, and want of 
skill, everything Tdid took up out of my time. For example, 
I was full two-and-forty days in making a board for a long 
shelf, which I wanted in my cave. Two sawyers, with their 
tools and a saw-pit, would have cut six of them out of the 
same tree in half a day. 

My case was this: it was to be a large tree which was to 
be cut down, because my board was to be a broad one. 
This tree I was three days a-cutting down, and two more 
cutting off the boughs, and reducing it to a log, or piece of 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


67 


timber. With inexpressible hacking and hewing, I reduced 
both the sides of it into chips till it began to be light enough 
to move; then I turned it, and made one side of it smooth 
and flat as a board from end to end; then turning that 
side downward, cut the other side till I brought the plank 
to be about three inches thick, and smooth on both sides. 
Any one may judge the labor of my hands in such a piece 
of work; but labor and patience carried me through that, 
and many other things; I only observe this in particular, 
to show the reason why so much of my time went away 
with so little work, viz., that what might be a little to be 
done with help and tools, was a vast labor and required a 
prodigious time to do alone, and by hand. But notwith- 
standing this, with patience and labor I went through many 
things, and indeed everything that my circumstances made 
necessary to me to do, as will appear by what follows. 

I was now, in the months of November and December, 
expecting my crop of barley and rice. The ground I had 
rnanured or dug up for them was not great; for as I observed, 
my seed of each was not above the quantity of half a peck, 
for I had lost one whole crop by sowing in the dry season; 
but now my crop promised very well, when on a sudden I 
found I was in danger of losing it all again by enemies of 
several sorts, which it was scarcely possible to keep from 
it; as, first, the goats, and wild creatures which I. called 
hares, which, tasting the sweetness of the blade, lay in it 
night and day, as soon as it came up, and eat it so close 
that it could get no time to shoot up into stalk. 

This I saw no remedy for, but by making an inclosure 
about it with a hedge, which I did with a great deal of toil, 
and the more, because it required a great deal of speed; 
the creatures daily spoiling my corn. However, as my 
arable land was but small, suited to my crop, I got it totally 
well fenced in about three weeks’ time. Shooting some of 


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the creatures in the daytime, I set my dog to guard it in the 
night, tying him up to a stake at the gate, where he would 
stand and bark all night long; so in a little time the enemies 
forsook the place, and the corn grew very strong and well, 
and began to ripen apace. 

But as the beasts ruined me before, while my corn was 
in the blade, so the birds were as likely to ruin me now, 
when it was in the ear. Going along by the place to see 
how it throve, I saw my little crop surrounded with fowls, 
of I know not how many sorts, who stood, as it were, watch- 
ing until I should be gone. I immediately let fly among 
them, for I always had my gun with me. I had no sooner 
shot, but there rose up a little cloud of fowls, which I had 
not seen at all, from among the cora itself. 

This touched me sensibly, for I foresaw that in a few days 
they would devour all my hopes; that I should be starved, 
and never be able to raise a crop at all; and what to do I 
could not tell. However, I resolved not to lose my corn, 
if possible, though I should watch it night and day. In 
the first place, I went among it to see what damage was 
already done, and found they had spoiled a good deal of 
it; but that as it was yet too green for them, the loss was not 
so great, but the remainder was likely to be a good crop, if 
it could be saved. 

I stayed by it to load my gun, and then coming away, I 
could easily see the thieves sitting upon all the trees about 
me, as if they only waited till I was gone away, and the 
event proved it to be so. I was no sooner out of their 
sight, but they dropped down one by one into the corn 
again. I was so provoked that I could not have patience 
to stay till more came on, knowing that every grain that 
they eat now was, as it might be said, a peck-loaf to me, in 
consequence. Coming up to the hedge, I fired again, and 
killed three of them. This was what I wished for; so I 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


69 


took them up, and served them as we serve notorious thieves 
in England, viz., hanged them in chains, for a terror to others. 
It is impossible to imagine almost that this should have 
had such an effect as it had, for the fowls would not only 
not come at the corn, but, in short, they forsook all that 
part of the island, and I could never see a bird near the 
place as long as my scarecrows hung there. This I was 
very glad of, you may be sure, and about the latter end of 
December, which was our second harvest of the year, I 
reaped my corn. 

I was sadly put to it for a scythe or sickle to cut it down, 
and all I could do was to make one, as well as I could, out 
of one of my broadswords, or cutlasses, which I saved 
among the arms out of the ship. However, as my crop was 
but small, I had no great difficulty to cut it down. I reaped 
it in my way. I cut nothing off but the ears, and carried 
it away in a great basket, which I had made, and so rubbed 
it out with my hands. At the end of all my harvesting, I 
found that out of my half-peck of seed I had near two bush- 
els of rice, and above two bushels and a half of barley. 
That is to say, by my guess, for I had no measure at that 
time. 

However, this was a great encouragement to me, and I 
foresaw that in time it would please God to supply me with 
bread. Yet here I was perplexed again, for I neither knew 
how to grind or make meal of my corn, or indeed how to 
clean it and part it; nor, jf made into meal how to make 
bread of it; and if how to make it, yet I knew not how to 
bake it. These things being added to my desire of having 
a good quantity for store, and to secure a constant supply, I 
resolved not to taste any of this crop, but to preserve it all 
for seed against the next season, and in the meantime, to 
employ all my study and hours of working to accomplish 
this great work of providing myself with corn and bread. 


70 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


It might be truly said that now I worked for my bread. 
It is a little wonderful, and what I believe few people have 
thought much upon, viz., the strange multitude of little 
things necessary in providing, producing, curing, dressing, 
making, and finishing this, one article of bread. 

I, that was reduced to a mere state of nature, found this 
to my daily discouragement and was made more and more 
sensible of it every hour, even after I had got the first handful 
of seed-corn which, as I have said, came up unexpectedly, 
and indeed to a surprise. 

First, I had no plow to turn up the earth; no spade or 
shovel to dig it. Well, this I conquered by making me a 
wooden spade, as I observed before. This did my work 
but in a wooden manner. Though it cost me a great many 
days to make it, yet, for want of iron, it not only wore out 
the sooner, but made my work the harder, and made it be 
performed much worse. However, this I bore with too, 
and was content to work it out with patience, and bear 
with the badness of the performance. When the corn was 
sown, I had no harrow, but was forced to go over it myself, 
and drag a great heavy bough of a tree over it to scratch it, 
as it may be called, rather than rake or harrow it. When 
it was growing, or grown, I have observed already how 
many things I wanted to fence it, secure it, mow or reap it, 
cure, and carry it home, thrash, part it from the. chaff, and 
save it. Then I wanted a mill to grind it, sieve to dress it, 
yeast and salt to make it into bread, and an oven to bake 
it in; and all these things I did without, as shall be observed. 
Yet the corn was an inestimable comfort and advantage to 
me too. But this, as I said, made everything laborious 
and tedious to me. That there was no help for it. Neither 
was my time so much loss to me, because, as I divided it, 
a certain part of it was every day appointed to these works. 
As I had resolved to use none of the corn for bread till I had a 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


71 


greater quantity by me, I had the next six months to apply 
myself wholly, by labor and invention, to furnish myself 
with utensils proper for the performing all the operations 
necessary for making the corn, when I had it fit for my use. 

But first I was to prepare more land, for I had now seed 
enough to sow above an acre of ground. Before I did this, 
I had a week’s work at least to make me a spade, which, 
when it was done, was but a sorry one indeed, and very 
heavy, and required double labor to work with it. How- 
ever, I went through that, and sowed my seed in two large 
flat pieces of ground, as near my house as I could find them 
to my mind, and fenced them in with a good hedge, the 
stakes of which were all cut of that wood which I had set 
before, which I knew would grow; so that, in one year’s 
time, I knew I should have a quick or living hedge, that 
would want but little repair. This work was not so little 
as to take me up less than three months, because great 
part of that time was of the wet season, when I could not 
go abroad. Within-door, that is, when it rained, and I 
could not go out, I found employment in the following 
occupations — always observing that all the while I was at 
work I diverted myself with talking to my parrot, and 
teaching him to speak; and I quickly learnt him to know 
his own name, and at last to speak it out pretty loud, ‘‘ Poll,” 
which was the first word I ever heard spoken in the island 
by any mouth but my own. This, therefore, was not my 
work, but an assistant to my work; for now, as I said, I 
had a great employment upon my hands, as follows: viz., 
I had long studied, by some means or other, to make myself 
some earthen vessels, which, indeed, I wanted sorely, but 
knew not where to come at them. However, considering 
the heat of the climate, I did not doubt but if I could find 
out any clay, I might botch up some such pot as might, 
being dried by the sun, be hard enough and strong enough 


72 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


to bear handling, and to hold anything that was dry, and 
required to be kept so. As this was necessary in preparing 
corn, meal, etc., which was the thing I was upon, I resolved 
to make some as large as I could, and fit only to stand like 
jars, to hold what should be put into them. 

It would make the reader pity me, or rather laugh at me, 
to tell how many awkward ways I took to raise this paste; 
what odd, misshapen, ugly things I made; how many of 
them fell in, and how many fell out — ^the clay not being 
stiff enough to bear its own weight; how many cracked 
by the over-violent heat of the sun, being set out too hastily; 
and how many fell to pieces with only removing, as well 
before as after they were dried; and, in a word, how, after 
having labored hard to find the clay — to dig it, to temper 
it to bring it home, and work it — I could not make above 
wit, large earthen ugly things (I cannot call them jars) in 
about two months’ labor. 

However, as the sun baked these two very dry and hard, 

I lifted them very gently up, and set them down again in 
two great wicker baskets, which I had made on purpose for 
them, that they might not break. As between the pot and 
the basket there was, a little room to spare, I stuffed it full 
of the rice and barley straw. These two pots being to 
stand always dry, I thought would hold my dry corn, and 
perhaps the meal, when the corn was bruised. 

Though I miscarried so much in my design for large pots, 
yet I made several smaller things with better success; such 
as little round pots, flat dishes, pitchers, and pipkins, and 
anything my hand turned to; and the heat of the sun baked 
them strangely hard. 

But all this would not answer my end, which was to get 
an earthen pot to hold what was liquid, and bear the fire; 
which none of these could do. It happened after some 
time, making a pretty large fire for cooking my meat, when 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


73 


I went to put it out after I had done with it I found a broken 
piece of one of my earthenware vessels in the fire, burnt 
as hard as a stone, and red as a tile. I was agreeably sur- 
prised to see it, and said to myself that certainly they might 
be made to burn whole, if they would burn broken. 

This set me to study how to order my fire so as to make it 
burn me some pots. I had no notion of a kiln, such as the 
potters burn in, or of glazing them with lead, though I had 
some lead to do it with. I placed three large pipkins, and 
two or three pots, in a pile, one upon another, and placed 
my firewood all round it, with a great heap of embers under 
them. I plied the fire with fresh fuel round the outside, 
and upon the top, till I saw the pots in the inside red-hot 
quite through, and observed that they did not crack at all. 
When I saw them clear red, I let them stand in that heat 
about five or six hours, till I found one of them, though it 
did not crack, did melt or run. The sand which was 
mixed with the clay melted by the violence of the heat, and 
would have run into glass if I had gone on. So I slacked my 
fire gradually till the pots began to abate of the red color, 
and watching them all night, that I might not let the fire 
abate too fast, in the morning I had three very good (I will 
not say handsome) pipkins, and two other earthen pots, 
as hard burnt as could be desired, and one of them perfectly 
glazed with the running of the sand. 

After this experiment, I need not say that I wanted no 
sort of earthenware for my use. But I must needs say as 
to the shapes of them they were very indifferent, as any one 
may suppose, when I had no way of making them but as 
the children make dirt pies, or as a woman would make 
pies that never learned to raise paste. 

No joy at a thing of so mean a nature was ever equal to 
mine, when I found I had made an earthen pot that would 
bear the fire. I had hardly patience to stay till they were 


74 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


cold before I set one on the fire again, with some water in 
it, to boil me some meat, which it did admirably well. With 
a piece of a kid I made some very good broth, though I wanted 
oat-meal and several other ingredients requisite to make 
it as good as I would have had it. 

My next concern was to get me a stone mortar to stamp 
or beat some corn. in. As to the mill, th'ere^was no thought 
of arriving to that perfection of art with one pair of hands. 
To supply this want I was at a great loss. Of all the trades 
in the world, I was as perfectly unqualified for a stone- 
cutter as for any whatever. Neither had I any tools to go 
about it with. I spent many a day to find out a great stone 
big enough to cut hollow, and make fit for a mortar, and 
could find none at all, except what was in the solid rock, 
and which I had no way to dig or cut out; nor indeed were 
the rocks in the island of hardness sufficient, but were all 
of a sandy, crumbling stone, which would neither bear the 
weight of a heavy pestle, nor would break the corn without 
filling it with sand. So, after a great deal of time lost in 
searching for a stone, I gave it over, and resolved to look 
out a great block of hard wood, which I found indeed much 
easier. Getting one as big as I had strength to stir, I 
rounded it and formed it on the outside with my ax and 
hatchet, and then, with the help of fire and infinite labor, 
made a hollow place in it, as the Indians in Brazil make 
their canoes. After this,' I made a great heavy pestle, or 
beater, of the wood called the iron-wood; and this I pre- 
pared and laid by against I had my next crop of corn, which 
I proposed to myself to grind, or rather pound my corn or 
meal, to make my bread. 

My next difficulty was to make a sieve, or searce, to 
dress my meal, and to part it from the bran and the husk; 
without which I did not see it possible I could have any 
bread. This was a most difficult thing, so much as but to 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


75 


think on, for to be sure I had nothing like the necessary 
things to make it with. I mean fine thin canvas, or stuff, 
to scarce the meal through. And here I was at a full stop 
for many months. Nor did I really know what to do. 
Linen I had none left but what was mere rags. I had 
goats^ hair, but neither knew I how to weave or spin it; 
and had I known how, here were no tools to work with. All 
the remedy that I found for this was, that at last I did 
remember I had, among the seamen’s* clothes which were 
saved out of the ship, some neckcloths of calico or muslin. 
With some pieces of these I made three small sieves, but 
proper enough for the work. Thus I made shift for a good 
many years. How I did afterwards, I shall show in its 
place. 

The baking part was the next thing to be considered, and 
how I should make bread when I came to have corn; for, 
first, I had no yeast. As to that part, as there was no 
supplying the want, so I did not concern myself much about 
it. But for an oven, I was indeed in great pain. At length 
I found out an experiment for that also, which was this: 
I made some earthen vessels very broad, but not deep, 
that is to say, about two feet in diameter, and not above 
nine inches deep; these I burned in the fire, as I had done 
the other, and laid them by; and when I wanted to bake, 
I made a great fire upon the hearth, which I had paved 
with some square tiles, of my own making and burning 
also; but I should not call them square. 

When the firewood was burned pretty much into embers, 
or live coals, I drew them forward upon the hearth, so as 
to cover it all over, and there I let them lie till the hearth 
was very hot; then sweeping away all the embers, I set 
down my loaf or loaves, and whelming down the earthen 
pot upon them, drew the embers all round the outside of 
the pot, to keep in and add to the heat; and thus, as well 


76 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


as in the best oven in the world, I baked my barley-loaves, 
and became, in little time, a good pastry-cook into the bar- 
gain; for I made myself several cakes and puddings of the 
rice; indeed I made no pies, neither had I anything to put 
into them supposing I had, except the flesh either of fowls 
or goats.. 

It need not be wondered at if all these things took me up 
most part of the third year of my abode here; for, it is to be 
observed that, in the intervals of these things, I had my new 
harvest and husbandry to manage. I reaped my corn in 
its season, and carried it home as well as I could, and laid 
it up in the ear, in my large baskets, till I had time to rub 
it out, for I had no floor to thrash it on, or instrument to 
thrash it with. 

And now, indeed, my stock of corn increasing, I really 
wanted to build my barns bigger. I wanted a place to lay 
it up in, for the increase of the corn now yielded me so 
much that I had of the barley about twenty bushels, and of 
the. rice as much, or more; insomuch that I now resolved to 
begin to use it freely. My bread had been quite gone a 
great while. Also I resolved to see what quantity would be 
sufficient for me a whole year, and to sow but once a year. 

Upon the whole, I found that the forty bushels of barley 
and rice were much more than I could consume in a year. 
So I resolved to sow just the same quantity every year that I 
sowed the last, in hopes that such a quantity would fully 
provide me with bread. 

All the while these things were doing, you may be sure my 
thoughts ran many times upon the prospect of land which I 
had seen from the other side of the island. I was not with- 
out secret wishes that 1 was on shore there, fancying that, 
seeing the mainland, and an inhabited country, I might find 
some way or other to convey myself farther, and perhaps 
at last find some means of escape. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


77 


All this while I made no allowance for the dangers of 
such a condition, and how I might fall into the hands of 
savages, and perhaps such as I might have reason to think 
far worse than the lions and tigers of Africa: that if I once 
came into their power I should run a hazard more than a 
thousand to one of being killed, and perhaps of being eaten; 
for I had heard that the people of the Caribbean coasts were 
cannibals, or men-eaters, and I knew by the latitude that I 
could not be far oflF from that shore! That suppose they 
were not cannibals, yet they might kill me, as many Euro- 
peans who had fallen into their hands had been served, 
even when they had been ten or twenty together — much 
more I, that was but one, and could make little or no defense. 
All these things, I say, which I ought to have considered 
well of, and I did cast up in my thoughts afterwards, yet 
look up none of my apprehensions at first, and my head 
ran mightily upon the thought of getting over to that shore. 

At length I determined to try whether it was not possible 
to make myself a canoe, or periagua, such as the natives 
of those climates make, even without tools, or as I might 
say, without hands — viz., of the trunk of a great tree. This 
I not only thought possible, but easy, and pleased myself 
extremely with my thoughts of making it, and with my 
having much more convenience for it than any of the Negroes 
or Indians. I did not at all consider the particular incon- 
veniences which I lay under more than the Indians did, 
viz., want of hands to move it into the water when it was 
made — a difficulty much harder for me to surmount than 
all of the consequeces of want of tools could be to them. 
What was it to me, that when had I choosen a vast tree in 
the wood, I might with great trouble cut it down, if after 
I might be able with my tools to hew and dub the outside 
into the proper shape of a boat, and burn or cut out the 
inside to make it hollow, so as to make a boat of it— if, 


78 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


after all this, I must leave it just there where I found it, 
and was not able to launch it into the water? 

One would have thought I could not have had the least 
reflection upon my mind of my circumstances while I was 
making this boat, but I should have immediately thought 
how I should get it into the sea. But my thoughts were 
so intent upon my voyage over the sea in it, that I never 
once considered how I should get it off the land. It was 
really, in its own nature, more easy for me to guide it over 
forty-five miles of sea, than about forty-five fathoms of land, 
where it lay, to set it afloat in the water. 

I went to work upon this boat the most like a fool that 
ever man did, who had any of his senses awake. I pleased 
myself with the design without determining whether I was 
ever able to undertake it; not but that the difficulty of 
launching my boat came often into my head; but I put a 
stop to my inquiries into it, by this foolish answer which I 
gave myself: ‘‘Let me first make it; I warrant I shall find 
some way or other to get it along when it is done.’’ 

This was a most preposterous method; but the eagerness 
of my fancy prevailed, and to work I went, and felled a 
cedar tree. I question much whether Solomon ever had 
such a one for the building the Temple at Jerusalem. It 
was five feet ten inches diameter at the lower part next the 
stump, and four feet eleven inches diameter at the end of 
twenty-two feet; after which it lessened for a while, and 
then parted into branches. It was not without infinite labor 
that I felled this tree. I was twenty days hacking and hew- 
ing at it at the bottom; I was fourteen more getting the 
branches and limbs and t^he vast spreading head of it cut oflF, 
which I hacked and hewed through with my ax and hatchet, 
and inexpressible labor; after this, it cost me a month to shape 
it and dub it to a proportion, and to something like the 
bottom of a boat, that it might swim upright as it ought 



delighted with it. The boat was really much bigger than 
ever I saw a canoe or a periagua, that was made of one 
tree, in my life. Many a weary stroke it had cost, you may 
be sure — for there remained nothing but to get it into the 
water. Had I gotten it into the water, I make no question 
but I should have begun the maddest voyage, and the most 
unlikely to be performed, that ever was undertaken. 

But all my devices to get it into the water failed me; 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 79 


to do. It cost me near three months more to clear the inside, 
and work it out so as to make an exact boat of it. This I 
did, indeed, without fire, by mere mallet and chisel, and by 
the dint of hard labor, till I had brought it to be a very 
handsome periagua, and big enough to have carried six- 
and-twenty men, and consequently big enough to have 
carried me and all my cargo. 

When I had gone through this work, I was extremely 


80 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


though they cost infinite labor too. It lay about one hun- 
dred yards from the water, and not more. The first incon- 
venience was, it was up hill towards the creek. Well, to 
take away this discouragement, I resolved to dig into the 
surface of the earth, and so make a declivity. This I began, 
and it cost me a prodigious deal of pains (but who grudge 
pains that have their deliverance in view.^). When this 
was worked through, and this difficulty managed, it was 
still much at one, for I could not stir the canoe. Then I 
measured the distance of the ground, and resolved to cut a 
dock or canal, to bring the water up to the canoe, seeing I 
could not bring the canoe down to the water. Well, I 
began this work; and when I began to enter into it, and 
calculate how deep it was to be dug, how broad, how the 
stuff was to be thrown out, I found that, by the number of 
hands I had, being none but my own, it must have been 
ten or twelve years before I could have gone through with 
it; for the shore lay so high that at the upper end it must 
have been at least twenty feet deep. So at length, though 
with great reluctancy, I gave this attempt over. 

This grieved me heartily; and now I saw, though too 
late, the folly of beginning a work before we count the cost, 
and before we judge rightly of our own strength to go 
through with it. 

In the middle of this work I finished my fourth year in 
this place, and kept my anniversary with the same devotion, 
and with as much comfort as ever before, for, by a constant 
study and serious application of the Word of God, and by 
the assistance of his grace, I gained a different knowledge 
from what I had before. I entertained different notions of 
things. I looked now upon the world as a thing remote, 
which I had nothing to do with, no expectation from, and, 
indeed, no desires about; in a word, I had nothing indeed 
to do with it, nor was ever likely to have. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


81 


. I had now been here so long, that many things which I 
brought on shore for my help were either quite gone, or 
very much wasted and near spent. My ink, as I observed, 
had been gone some time, all but a very little, which I eked 
out with water, a little and a little, till it was so pale, it 
scarce left any appearance of black upon the paper. The 
next thing was that of my bread, I mean the biscuit which 
I brought out of the ship; this I had husbanded to the last 
degree, allowing myself but one cake of bread a day for 
above a year. Yet I was quite without bread for a year 
before I got any corn of my own. Great reason I had to 
be thankful that I had any at all, the getting it being next 
to miraculous. 

My clothes too, began to decay mightily. As to linen, I 
had had none a good while, except some checkered shirts 
which I found in the chests of the other seamen, and which 
I carefully preserved; because many times I could bear 
no other clothes on but a shirt: and it was a very great 
help to me that I had, among all the men’s clothes of the 
.ship, almost three dozen of shirts. There were also several 
thick watch-coats of the seamen’s which were left behind, 
but they were too hot to wear: and though it is true that 
the weather was so violently hot that there was no need of 
clothes, yet I could not go quite naked — no, though I had 
been inclined to it, which I was not; nor could I abide 
the thoughts of it, though I was all alone. One reason 
why I could not go naked was, I could not bear the heat 
of the sun so well when quite naked as with some clothes 
on; nay, the heat frequently blistered my skin; whereas, 
with a shirt on, the air itself made some motion, and whistling 
under the shirt, was twofold cooler than without it. * No 
more could I ever bring myself to go out in the heat of the 
sun without a cap or a hat; the heat of the sun, beating 
with such violence as it does in that place, would give me 


82 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


the headache presently, by darting so directly on my head, 
without a cap or hat on, so that I could not bear it; whereas, 
if I put on my hat, it would presently go away. 

Upon these views, I began to consider about putting the 
few rags I had, which I called clothes, into some order. I 
had worn out all the waistcoats I had, and my business was 
now to try if I could not make jackets out of the great 
watch-coats which I had by me, and with such other mater- 
ials as I had. So I set to work, tailoring, or rather, indeed, 
botching, for I made most piteous work of it. However, 
f made shift to make two or three waistcoats, which I hoped 
would serve me a great while. As for breeches or draw- 
ers, I made but a very sorry shift indeed till after- 
wards. 

I have mentioned that I saved the skins of all the creatures 
that I killed, I mean four-footed ones, and I had them hung 
up stretched out with sticks in the sun, by which means 
some of them were so dry and hard that they were fit for 
little, but others, it seems, were. very useful. The first thing 
I made of these was a great cap for my head, with the hair 
on the outside, to shoot off the rain. This I performed so 
well, that after, I made me a suit of clothes wholly of those 
skins — that is to say, a waistcoat, and breeches open at the 
knees, and both loose, for they were rather wanting to keep 
me cool than to keep me warm. I must not omit to acknowl- 
.'edge that they were wretchedly made; for if I was a bad 
carpenter, I was a worse tailor. However, they were such 
as I made a very good shift with, and when I was abroad, 
if it happened to rain, the hair of the waistcoat and cap 
being outermost, I was kept very dry. 

After this, I spent a great deal of time and pains to make 
an umbrella. I was indeed in ’great want of one, and had 
a great mind to make one. I took a world of pains at it, 
and was a great while before I could make anything likely 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


83 


to hold; nay, after I thought I had hit the way, I spoiled 
two or three before I made one to my mind. But at last I 
made one that answered indifferently well. The main 
difficulty I found was to make it to let down. I could make 
it spread, but if it did not let down too, and draw in, it 
would not be portable for me any' way but just over my 
head, which I would not do. However, at last, as I said, I 
made one to answer. I covered it with skins, the hair 
upwards, so that it cast off the rain like a pent-house and 
kept off the sun so 'effectually that I could walk out in the 
hottest of the weather with greater advantage than I could 
before in the coolest, and when I had no need of it, I could 
close it, and carry it under my arm. 

I cannot say that, after this for five years, any extra- 
ordinary thing happened to me, but I lived on in the same 
course, in the same posture and place, just as before. The 
chief thing I was employed in, besides my yearly labor of 
planting my barley and rice, and curing my raisins— of 
both which I always kept up just enough to. have sufficient 
stock of the year’s provisions beforehand — I say, besides 
this yearly labor, and my daily labor of going out with my 
gun, I had one labor to make me a canoe, which at last I 
finished; so that, by digging a canal to it of six feet wide 
and four feet deep, I brought it into the creek, almost half 
a mile. As for the first, which was so vastly big, as I made 
it without considering before hand, as I ought to do, how 
I should be able to launch it, so, never being able to bring 
it into the water, or bring the Vvater to it, I was obliged to 
let it lie where it was, as a memorandum to teach me to be 
wiser the next time. Indeed, the next time, though I could 
not get a tree proper for it, and was in a place where I could 
not get the water to it at any less distance than, as I have 
said, of near half a mile, yet, as I saw it was practicable at 
last, I never gave it over; and though I was near two years 


84 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


about it, yet I never grudged my labor, in hopes of having 
a boat to go off* to sea at last. 

However, though my little periagua was finished, yet the 
size of it was not at all answerable to the design which I 
had in view when I made the first; I mean of venturing over 
to the terra firma, where it was above forty miles broad. 
Accordingly, the smallness of my boat assisted to put an 
end to that design, and now I thought no more of it. As 
I had a boat, my next design was to make a tour round the 
island. I had been on the other side in one place, crossing, 
as I have already described it, over the land, so the discov- 
eries I made in that journey made me very eager to see other 
parts of the coast. Now I had a boat, I thought of nothing 
but sailing round the island. 

For this purpose, and that I might do everything with 
discretion and consideration, I fitted up a little mast in my 
boat, and made a sail to it out of some of the pieces of the 
ship’s sails which lay in store, and of which I had a great 
store by me. Having fitted my mast and sail, and tried the 
boat, I found she would sail very well. Then I made little 
lockers, or boxes, at each end of my boat, to put provisions, 
necessaries, ammunition, etc., into to be kept dry, either 
from rain or the spray of the sea. ^n the inside of the boat 
I cut a little, long, hollow place where I could lay my gun, 
making a flap to hang down over it, to keep it dry. 

I fixed my umbrella also in a step at the stern, like a mast, 
to stand over my head, and keep the heat of the sun off of 
me, like an awning. And thus I every now and then took 
a little voyage upon the sea; but never went far out, nor 
far from the creek. At last, being eager to view the cir- 
cumference of my little kingdom, I resolved upon my tour; 
and accordingly I victualed my ship for the voyage, putting 
in two dozen of loaves (cakes I should rather call them) 
of barley-bread, an earthen pot full of parched rice (a food 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


85 


I ate great deal of), a little bottle of rum, half a goat, 
and powder with shot for killing more, and two large watch 
coats, of those which, as I mentioned before, I had saved 
outof the seamen’s chests. These I took, one to lie upon 
and the other to cover me in the night. 

It was the 6th of November, in the 6th year of my reign, 
or my captivity, which you please, that I set out on this 
voyage, I found it much longer than I expected. Though 
the island itself was not very large, yet when I came to. the 
east side of it, I found a great ledge of socks lie out about 
two leagues into sea, some above water, some under it ; 
and beyond that a shoal of sand, lying dryly half a league 



more so that I was obliged to go a great way out to sea to 
double that point. When I first discovered them, I was 
going to give over my enterprise, and come back again, not 
knowing how far it might oblige me to go out to sea; and 
above all, doubting how I should get back again. So I 
came to an anchor; for I had made a kind of an anchor with 
a piece of a broken grappling which I got out of the ship. 

Having secured my boat, I took my gun and went on 
shore climbing up a hill, which seemed to overlook that 
point vi^here I saw the full extent of it, and resolved to venture. 

In my viewing the sea from that hill where I stood, I 


86 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


perceived a strong and, indeed, a most furious current, ’which 
ran to the east, and even came close to the point. I took 
the more notice of it, because I saw there might be some 
danger, that when I came into it, I might be carried out to 
sea by the strength of it, and not be able to make the island 
again. And, indeed, had I not got first upon this hill, I 
believe it would have been so. There was the same current 
on the other side of the island, only that it set off at a farther 
distance, and I saw there was a strong eddy under the shore. 
So I had nothing to do but to get out of the first current, 
and I should presently be in an eddy. 

I lay here, however, two days, because the wind blowing 
pretty fresh at E.S.E., and that being just contrary to the 
current, made a great breach of the sea upon the point. So 
that it was not safe for me to keep too close to the shore for 
the breach, nor to go too far off, because of the stream. 

The third day, in the morning, the wind having abated 
over-night, the sea was calm, and I ventured. But I am a 
warning-piece to all rash and ignorant pilots; for no sooner 
was I come to the point, when I was not even my boat’s 
length from the shore, but I found myself in a great depth 
of water, and a current like the sluice of a mill. It carried 
my boat along with it with such violence that all I could do 
could not keep her so much as on the edge of it. I found 
it hurried me farther and farther out from the eddy, which 
was on my left hand. There was no wind stirring to help 
me, and all that I could do with my paddles signified nothing. 
And now I began to give myself over for lost. As the cur- 
rent was on both sides of the island, I knew in a few leagues’ 
distance they must join again, and then I was irrecoverable 
gone. I did not see any possibility of avoiding it. I had 
no prospect before me but of perishing, not by the sea, 
for that was calm enough, but of starving from hunger. I 
had, indeed, found a tortoise on the shore, as big almost 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


87 


as I could lift, and had tossed it into the boat; and I had 
a great jar of fresh water, that is to say, one of my 
earthen pots; but what was all this to being driven into 
the vast ocean, where, to be sure, there was no shore, no 
main land or island, for a thousand leagues at least ? 

And now I saw how easy it was for the providence of God 
to make the most miserable condition that mankind could 
be in worse. Now I looked back upon my desolate, solitary 
island as the most pleasant place in the world, and all the 
happiness my heart could wish for was to be there again. 
I stretched out my hands to it, with eager wishes. ‘‘O happy 
desert!’’ said I, “I s’hall never see thee more. O miserable 
creature! whither am I going.?,” 

I worked hard till, indeed, my strength was almost ex- 
hausted, and kept my boat as much to the northward — 
that is, towards the side of the current which the eddy 
lay on — as possibly I could; when about noon, as the sun 
passed the meridian, I thought I felt a little breeze of wind 
in my face, springing up from the S.S.E. This cheered my 
heart a little, and especially when, in about half an hour 
more, it blew a pretty small, gentle gale. By this time, I 
had got at a frightful distance from the island; and had the 
least cloudy or hazy weather intervened, I had been undone 
another way, too; for I had no compass on board, and 
should never have known how to have steered towards the 
island, if I had but once lost sight of it. But the weather 
continuing clear, I applied myself to get up my mast again, 
and spread my sail, standing away to the north as much as 
possible, to get out of the current. 

Just as I had set my mast and sail, and the boat bega'n to 
stretch away, I saw even by the clearness of the water some 
alteration of the current was near. Where the current 
was so strong the water was foul. Perceiving the water 
clear, I found the current abate. Presently I found to the 


88 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


east, at about half a mile, a breach of the sea upon some 
rocks. These rocks I found caused the current to part 
again, and as the main stress of it ran away more southerly, 
leaving the rocks to the northeast, so the other returned by 
the repulse of the rock, and made a strong eddy, which 
ran back again to the northwest, with a very sharp stream. 

They who know what it is to have a reprieve brought to 
them upon the ladder, or to be rescued from thieves just 
going to murder them, or who have been in such extremities, 
may guess what my present surprise of joy was, and how 
gladly I put my boat into the stream of this eddy. The 
wind also freshening, how gladly I spread my sail to it, 
running cheerfully before the wind, and with a strong' 
tide or eddy underfoot. 

This eddy carried me about a league in my way back 
again, directly towards the island, but about two leagues 
more towards the northward than the current lay which 
carried me away at first; so that when I came near the 
island, I found myself open to the northern shore of it, 
that is to say, the other end of the island, opposite to that 
which I went out from. 

When I had made something more than a league of way 
by help of this current or eddy, I found it was spent, and 
saved me no farther. However, I found that being between 
two great currents, viz., that on the south side, which had * 
hurried me away, and that on the north, which lay about 
two leagues on the other side; I say, between these two, 
in the wake of the island, I found the water at least still, 
and running no way; and having still a breeze of wind 
fair to me, I kept on steering directly for the island, though 
not making such fresh way as I did before. 

About four o'clock in the evening, being then within 
about a league of the island, I found the point of the rocks 
which occasioned this disaster stretching out, as is described 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


89 


before, to the southward, and casting off the current more 
southerly, had, of course, made another eddy to the north; 
and this I found very strong, but directly setting the way 
my course lay, which was due west, but almost full north. 
However, having a fresh gale, I stretched across this eddy, 
slanting northwest; and in about an hour came within 
about a mile of the shore, where, it being smooth water, I 
soon got to land. 

When I was on shore, I fell on my knees, and gave God 
thanks for my deliverance, resolving to lay aside all thoughts 
of my deliverance by my boat; and refreshing myself with 
such things as I had, I brought my boat close to the shore, 
in a little cove that I had spied under some trees, and laid 
me down to sleep, being quite spent with the labor and 
fatigue of the voyage. 

I was now at a great loss which way to get home with 
my boat! I had run so much hazard, and knew too much 
of the case, to think of attempting it by the way I went out; 
and what might be on the other side (I mean the west side), 
I knew not, nor had I any mind to run any more ventures. 
So I resolved on the next morning to make my way westward 
along the shore, and to see if there was no creek where I 
might lay up my frigate in safety so as to have her again, 
if I wanted her. In about three miles, or thereabouts, 
coasting the shore, I came to a very good inlet or bay, about 
a mile over, which narrowed till it came to a very little rivulet 
or brook, where I found a very convenient harbor for my 
boat, and where she lay as if she had been in a little dock 
made on purpose for her. Here I put in, and having 
stowed my boat very safe, I went on shore to look about me, 
and see where I was. 

I soon found I had but a little passed by the place where I 
had been before, when I traveled on foot to that shore. 
So, taking nothing out of my boat but my gun and umbrella. 


90 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


for it was exceedingly hot, I began my march. The way 
was comfortable enough after such a voyage as I had been 
upon, and I reached my old bower in the evening, where I 
found everything standing as I left it; for I always kept it 
in good order, being, as I said before, my country-house. 

I got over the fence, and laid me down in the shade to 
rest my limbs, for I was very weary, and fell asleep. But 
judge you, if you can, that read my story, what a surprise 
I must have been in when I was awaked out of my sleep 
by a voice, calling me by my name several times. “Robin, 
Robin, Robin Crusoe! poor Robin Crusoe! Where are 
you, Robin Crusoe ^ Where are you ^ Where have you 
been 

I was so dead asleep at first, being fatigued with rowing 
or paddling, as it is called, the first part of the day, and 
walking the latter part, that I did not awake thoroughly; 
and dozing between sleeping and waking, thought I dreamed 
that somebody spoke to me; but as the voice continued to 
repeat, “Robin Crusoe! Robin Crusbe!” at last I began to 
awake more perfectly, and was at first dreadfully frightened, 
and started up in the utmost consternation. But no sooner 
were my eyes open, but I saw my Poll sitting on the top of 
the hedge, and immediately knew that it was he that spoke 
to me; for just in such a bemoaning language I had used 
to talk to him, and teach him; and he had learned it so 
perfectly that he would sit upon my finger, and lay his bill 
close to my face, and cry “Poor Robin Crusoe! Where are 
you Where have you been How came you here 
and such things as I had taught him. 

However, even though I knew it was the parrot, and that 
indeed it could be nobody else, it was a good while before 
I could compose myself. First, I was amazed how the 
creature got thither; and then, how he should just keep 
about the place, and nowhere else. As I was well satisfied 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


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it could be nobody but honest Poll, I got over it. Holding 
out my hand, and calling him by his name,‘‘ Poll,’’ the sociable 
creature came to me, and sat upon my thumb, as he used 
to do, and continued talking to me, “Poor Robin Crusoe.^ 
and how did I come here.? and where had I been.?” just 
as if he had been overjoyed to see me again; and so I carried 
him home along with me. 

I had now had enough of rambling to sea for some time, and 
had enough to do for many days, to sit still, and reflect upon 
the danger I had been in. I would have been very glad to 
have had my boat again on my side of the island; but I 
knew not how it was practicable to get it about. As to the 
east side of the island, which I had gone round, I knew well 
enough there was no venturing that way; my very heart 
would shrink, and my very blood run chill, but to think of 
it; and as to the other side of the island, I did not know 
how it might be there. But supposing the current ran 
with the same force against the shore at the east as it passed 
by it on the other, I might run the same risk of being driven 
down the stream, and carried by the island, as I had been 
before of being carried away from it. So with these thoughts 
I contented myself to be without any boat, though it had 
been the product of so many months’ labor to make it, and 
of so many more to get it into the sea. 

In this government of my temper, I remained near a year; 
lived a very sedate, retired life, as you may well suppose; 
and my thoughts being very much composed as to my con- 
dition, and fully comforted in resigning myself to the dis- 
positions of Providence, I thought I lived really very happily 
in all things, except that of society. 

I improved myself in this time in all the mechanic exer- 
cises which my necessities put me upon applying myself to; 
and I believe .1 should, upon occasion, have made a very 
good carpenter, especially considering how few tools I had. 


92 


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Besides this, I arrived at an unexpected perfection in my 
earthenware, and contrived well enough to make them with 
a wheel, which I found infinitely easier and better; because 
I made things round and shaped, which before were filthy 
things indeed to look on. 

In my wickerware also I improved much, and made 
abundance of necessary baskets, as well as my invention 
showed me; though not very handsome, yet they were 
such as were very handy and convenient for laying things 
up in, or fetching things home. For example, if I killed 
a goat abroad, I could hang it up in a tree, flay it, and 
dress it, and cut it to pieces, and bring it home in a basket: 
and the like by a turtle; I could cut it up, take out the eggs, 
and a piece or two of the flesh, which was enough for me, 
and bring them home in a basket, and leave the rest behind 
me. Also, large deep baskets were my receivers for my corn, 
which I always rubbed out as soon as it was dry, and cured; 
and kept it in great baskets, instead of a granary. 

I began now to perceive my powder abated considerably; 
and this was a want which it was impossible for me to supply, 
and I began seriously to consider what I must do when I 
should have no more powder; that is to say, how I should 
do to kill any goats. 

I set myself to study some art to trap and snare the goats, 
to see whether I could not catch some of them alive. To 
this purpose, I made snares to hamper them. I believe 
they were more than once taken in them; but my tackle 
was not good, for I had no wire, and always found them 
broken, and my bait devoured. At length, I resolved to 
try a pitfall. I dug several large pits in the earth, in places 
where I had observed the goats used to feed, and over these 
pits I placed hurdles, of my own making too, with a great 
weight upon them. Several times I put ears of barley and 
dry rice, without setting the trap. I could easily perceive 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


93 


that the goats had gone in and eaten up the corn, for I could 
see the marks of their feet. At length, I set three traps in 
one night, and going the next morning, I found them all 
standing, and yet the bait eaten and gone: this was very 
discouraging. 'However, I altered my traps; and, not to 
trouble you with particulars, going one morning to see my 
traps, I found in one of them a large old he-goat; and in 
one of the others three kids, a male and two females. 

As to the old one, I knew not what to do with him. He 
was so fierce, I durst not go into the pit to him; that is to 
say, to go about to bring him away alive, which was what 
I wanted. I could have killed him, but that was not my 
business, nor would it answer my end. I even let him out, 
and he ran away as if he had been frightened out of his wits. 
I had forgot then what I learned afterwards, that hunger 
will tame a lion. If I had let him stay there three or four 
days without food, and then have carried him some water 
to drink, and then a little corn, he would have been as tame 
as one of the kids; for they are mighty sagacious, tractable 
creatures, where they are well fed. 

However, for the present I let him go, knowing no better 
at that time. Then I went to the three kids, and taking 
them one by one, I tied them with strings together, and with 
some difficulty brought them all home. 

It was a good while before they would feed; but throwing 
them some sweet corn, it tempted them, and they began to 
be tame. And now I found that if I expected to supply 
myself with goats’ flesh, when I had no powder or shot left, 
breeding some up tarn# was my only way; when, perhaps, I 
might have them about my house like a flock of sheep. 
But, then, it occurred to me that I must keep the tame 
from the wild, or else they would always run wild when they 
grew up; and the only way for this was to have some inclosed 
piece of ground, well fenced either with hedge or pale, to 


94 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


keep them up so effectually, that those within might not 
break out, or those without break in. 

This was a great undertaking for one pair of hands; yet 
as I saw there was an absolute necessity for doing it, my. 
first piece of work was to find out a proper piece of ground; 
viz., where there was likely .to be herbage for them to eat, 
water for them to drink, and cover to keep them from the 
sun. 

Those who understand such inclosures will think I had 
very little contrivance, when I pitched upon a place very 
proper for all these, being a plain, open piece of meadow 
land,* or savanna (as our people call it in the western colo- 
nies), which had two or three little drills of fresh water in it, 
and at one end was very woody; I say, they will smile at 
my forecast, when I shall tell them I began by inclosing 
of this piece of ground in such a manner, that my hedge or 
pale must have been at least two miles about. Nor was 
the madness of it so great as to the compass, for if it was 
ten miles about, I was like to have time enough to do it in; 
but I did not consider that my goats would be as wild in 
so much compass as if they had had the whole island, and I 
should have so much room to chase them in that I should 
never catch them. 

My hedge was begun and carried on, I believe, about 
fifty yards, when this thought occurred to me; so I presently 
stopped short, and, for the first beginning, I resolved to 
inclose a piece of about one hundred and fifty yards in 
length, and one hundred yards in breadth, which, as it 
would maintain as many as I should have in any reasonable 
time, so, as my flock increased, I could add more ground to 
my inclosure. 

This was acting with- some prudence, and I went to work 
with courage. I was about three months hedging in the 
first piece; and, till I had done it, I tethered the three kids 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


95 


in the best part of it, and used them to feed as near me as 
possible, to make them familiar; and very often I would go 
and carry them some ears of barley, or a handful of rice, 
and feed them out of my hand; so that, after my inclosure 
was finished, and I let them loose, they would follow me 
up and down, bleating after me for a handful of corn. 

This answered my end, and in about a year and a half I 
had a flock of about twelve goats, kids and all; and in two 
years more I had three and forty, besides several that I 
took and killed for my food; and after that I inclosed five 
several pieces of ground to feed them in, with little pens 
to drive them into, to take them as I wanted them, and 
gates out of one piece of ground into another. 

But this was not all, for now I not only had goat’s flesh 
to feed on when I pleased, but milk too — a thing which 
indeed in my beginning I did not so much as think of, and 
which, when it came into my thoughts, was really an agree- 
able surprise; for now I set up my dairy, and sometimes had 
a gallon or two of milk in a day. And as Nature, who 
gives supplies of food to every creature, dictates even natur- 
ally how to make use of it, so I, that never milked a cow, 
much less a goat, or saw butter or cheese made, very readily 
and handily, though after a great many essays and mis- 
carriages, made me both butter and cheese at last, and 
never wanted it afterwards. What a table was here spread 
for me in a wilderness, where I saw nothing at first but to 
perish for hunger. 

It would have made a Stoic smile to have seen me and 
my little family sit down to dinner. There was my majesty, 
the prince and lord of the whole island; I had the lives of 
all my subjects at absolute command; I could hang, draw, 
give life and liberty and take it away, and no rebels among 
all my subjects. Then to see how like a king I dined too, 
all alone, attended by my servants! Poll, as if he had been 


96 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


my favorite, was the only person permitted to talk to me; 
my dog, who was now grown very old and crazy, and had 
found no species to multiply his kind upon, sat always at 
my right hand; and two cats, one on one side the table,* 
and one on the other, expecting now and then a bit from 
my hand, as a mark of special favor. 

But these were not the two cats which I brought on shore 
at first, for they were both of them dead, and had been 
interred near my habitation by my own hand; but one of 



them having multiplied by I know not what kind of creature, 
these were two I preserved tame; whereas the rest ran 
wild in the woods, and became indeed troublesome to me 
at last; for they would often come into my house, and 
plunder me too, till at last I was obliged- to shoot them, 
and did kill a great many; at length they left me. With 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


97 


this attendance and in this plentiful manner I lived; neither 
could I be said to want anything but society; and 
of that, in some time after this, I was likely to have too 
much. 

I was something impatient, as I have observed, to have 
the use of my boat, though very loath to run any more 
hazard; and therefore sometimes I sat contriving ways 
to get her about the island, and at other times I sat myself 
down contented enough without her. But I had a strange 
uneasiness in my mind to go down to the point of the island 
where, as I have said, in my last ramble, I went up the hill 
to see how the shore lay, and how the current set, that I 
might see what I had to do. This inclination increased 
upon me every day, and at length I resolved to travel 
thither by land. Following the edge of the shore, I did so. 
Had any one in England met such a man as I was, it must 
either have frightened therh, or raised a great deal of laugh- 
ter. As I frequently stood still to look at myself, I could 
not but smile at the notion of my traveling through York- 
shire with such an equipage, and in such a dress. Be 
pleased to take a sketch of my figure, as follows: 

I had a great high shapeless cap, made of goat’s skin, 
with a flap hanging down behind, as well to keep .the sun 
from me as to shoot the rain off from running into my neck; 
nothing being so hurtful in these climates as the rain upon 
the flesh under the clothes. 

I had a short jacket of goat’s skin, the skirts coming down 
to about the middle of the thighs, and a pair of open-kneed 
breeches of the same; the breeches were made of the skin 
of an old he-goat, whose hair hung down such a length on 
either side, that, like pantaloons, it reached to the middle of 
my legs. Stockings and shoes I had none, but had made 
me a pair of somethings, I scarce knew what to call them, 
like buskins, to flap over my legs, and lace on either side 


98 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


like spatterdashes, but of a most barbarous shape, as indeed 
were all the rest of my clothes. 

I had on a broad belt of goat’s skin dried, which I drew 
together with two thongs of the same, instead of buckles; 
and in a kind of a frog on either side of this, instead of 
a sword and dagger, hung a little saw and a hatchet, one on 
one side, one on the other. I had another belt not so 
broad, and fastened in the same manner, which hung over 
my shoulder; and at the end of it, under my left arm, hung 
two pouches, both made of goat’s skin too, in one of which 
hung my powder, in the other my shot. At my back I 
carried my basket, on my shoulder my gun, and over my 
head a great clumsy, ugly, goat-skin umbrella, but which, 
after all, was the most necessary thing I had about me next 
to my gun. As for my face, the color of it was really not 
so mulatto-like as one might expect from a man not at all 
careful of it, and living within nine or ten degrees of the 
equinox. My beard I had once suffered to grow till it was 
about a quarter of a yard long; but as I had both scissors 
and razors sufficient, I had cut it pretty short, except what 
grew on my upper lip, which I had trimmed into a large 
pair of Mahometan whiskers. Of these moustachios, or 
whiskers, I will not say they were long enough to hang my 
hat upon them, but they were of a length and shape mon- 
strous enough, and such as England would have passed 
for frightful. 

But all this is by the bye; for, as to my figure, I had so 
few to observe me that it was of no manner of consequence 
so I say no more to that part. In this kind of dress I went 
my new journey, and was out five or six days. I traveled 
first along the seashore, directly to the place where I first 
brought my boat to an anchor to get up upon the rocks; 
and having no boat now to take care of, I went over the 
land a nearer way to the same height that I was upon before, 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


99 


when, looking forward to the point of the rock which lay 
out, and which I was obliged to double with my boat, as I 
said above, I was surprised to see the sea all smooth and 
quiet — no rippling, no motion, no current, any more there 
than in other places. I was at a strange loss to understand 
this, and resolved to spend some time in the observing it, to 
see if nothing from the sets of the tide had occasioned it; 
but I was presently convinced how it was, viz., that the tide 
of ebb setting from the west, and joining with the current 
of waters from some great river on the shore, must be the 
occasion of this current; and that according as the wind 
blew more forcibly from the west or from the north, this 
current came near, or went farther from the shore; for, 
waiting thereabouts till evening, I went up to the rock 
again, and then the tide of ebb being made, I plainly saw 
the current again as before, only that it ran farther off, 
being near half a league from the shore, whereas in my case 
it set close upon the shore, and hurried me in my canoe 
along with it, which at another time it would not have done. 

This observation convinced me that I had nothing to do 
but to observe the ebbing and the flowing of the tide, and I 
might very easily bring my boat about the island again; 
but when I began to think about putting it in practice, I 
had such terror upon my spirits at the remembrance of the 
danger I had been in, that I could not think of it again 
with any patience; but, on the contrary, I took up another 
resolution, which was more safe, though more laborious — 
and this was, that I would build, or rather make me another 
periagua or canoe; and so have one for one side of the 
island, and one for the other. 

You are to understand, that now I had, as I may call it, 
two plantations on the island; one my little fortification or 
tent, with the wall about it, under the rock, with the cave 
behind me, which by this time I had enlarged into several 


LOFC. 


100 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


apartments, or caves, one 'within another. One of these, 
which was the driest and largest, and had a door out beyond 
my wall or fortification, that is to say, beyond where my wall 
joined to the rock, was all filled up with large earthen pots, 
of which I have given an account, and .with fourteen or 
fifteen great baskets, which would hold five or six bushels 
each, where ! laid up my stores of provision, especially my 
corn, some in the ear, cut off short from the straw, and the 
other rubbed out with my hand. 

As for my wall, made, as before, with long stakes or piles, 
those piles grew all like trees, and were by this time grown so 
big, and spread so very much, that there was not the least 
appearance, to any one’s view, of any habitation behind 
them. 

Near this dwelling of mine, but a little farther within 
the land, and upon lower ground, lay my two pieces of 
corn land, which I kept duly cultivated and sowed, and 
which duly yielded me their harvest in its season; and 
whenever I had occasion for more corn, I had more land 
adjoining, as fit as that. 

Besides this, I had my country-seat, and I had now a 
tolerable plantation there also; for first, I had my little 
bower, as I called it, which I kept in repair — that is to say, 
I kept the hedge, which circled it in, constantly fitted up 
to its usual height, the ladder standing always in the inside; 
I kept the trees, which at first were no more than my stakes, 
but were now grown very firm and tall, always so cut, that 
they might spread and grow thick and wild, and make the 
more agreeable shade, which they did effectually to my 
mind. In the middle of this I had my tent always standing, 
being a piece of a sail spread over poles set up for that 
purpose, and which never wanted any repair or renewing; 
and under this I had made me a squab or couch, with the 
skins of the creatures I had killed, and with other soft 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


101 


things, and a blanket laid on them, such as belonged to our 
sea-bedding, which I had saved; and a great watch-coat 
to cover me; and here, whenever I had occasion to be 
absent from my chief seat, I took up my country habitation. 

Adjoining to this, I had my inclosures for my cattle, that 
is to say, my goats; and as I had taken an inconceivable 
deal of pains to fence and inclose this ground, I was so 
anxious to see it kept entire, lest the goats should break 
through, that I never left off till, with infinite labor, I had 
stuck the outside of the hedge so full of small stakes, and 
so near to one another, that it was rather a pale than a hedge, 
and there was scarce room to put a hand through between 
them; which afterwards, when those stakes grew, as they 
all did in the next rainy season, made the inclosure strong 
like a wall — ^indeed stronger than any wall. 

This will testify for me that I was not idle, and that I 
spared no pains to bring to pass whatever appeared necessary 
for my comfortable support; for I considered the keeping 
up a breed of tame creatures thus at my hand would be a 
living magazine of flesh, milk, butter, and cheese for me as 
long as T lived in this place, if it were to be forty years; 
and that keeping them in my reach depended entirely upon 
my perfecting my inclosures to such a degree that I might 
be sure of keeping them together; which, by this method, 
indeed, I so effectually secured, that when these little stakes 
began to grow, I had planted them so very thick I was- 
forced to pull some of them up again. 

In this place also I had my grapes growing, which I 
principally depended- on for my winter stores of raisins, and 
which I never failed to preserve very carefully, as the best 
and most agreeable dainty of my whole diet; and, indeed, 
they were not agreeable only, but physical, wholesome, 
nourishing, and refreshing to the last degree. 

As this was also half-way between my other habitation 


102 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


and the place where I had laid up my boat, I generally 
stayed and lay here in my way thither, for I used frequently 
to visit my boat; and I kept all things about, or belonging 
to her, in very good order. Sometimes I went out in her to 
divert myself, but no more hazardous voyages would I go, 
scarcely ever above a stone’s cast or two from the shore, 
I was so apprehensive of being hurried out of my knowledge 
again by the currents or winds, or any other accident. But 
now I come to a new scene of my life. 



It happened one day, about noon, going towards my 
boat, I was exceedingly surprised with the print of a man’s 
naked foot on the shore, which was very plain to be seen on 
the sand. I stood like one thunderstruck, or as if I had 
seen an apparition. I listened, I looked around me, but 
I could hear nothing, nor see anything; I went up to a 
rising ground, to look farther; I went up the shore, and 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


103 


down the shore, but it was all one; I could see no other 
impression but that one. I went to it again to see if there 
were any more, and to observe if it might not be my fancy; 
but there was no room for that, for there was exactly the 
print of a foot — toes, heel, and every part of a foot. How 
it came thither I knew not, nor could in the least imagine. 
But after innumerable fluttering thoughts like a man per- 
fectly confused and out of himself, I came home to my 
fortification, not feeling, as we say, the ground I went on, 
but terrified to the last degree, looking behind me at every 
two or three steps, mistaking every bush and tree, and 
fancying every stump at a distance to be a man. Nor is it 
possible to describe how many various shapes my affrighted 
imagination represented things to me in; how many wild 
ideas were formed every moment in my fancy, and what 
strange unaccountable whimseys came into my thoughts 
by the way. 

When I came to my castle (for so I think I called it ever 
after this), I fled into it like one pursued. Whether I went 
over by the ladder, as first contrived, or went in at the hole 
in the rock, which I called a door, I cannot remember; for 
never frightened hare fled to cover, or fox to earth, with 
more terror of mind than I to this retreat. 

I had no sleep that night; the farther I was from the 
occasion of my fright, the greater my apprehensions were, 
which is something contrary to the nature of such things, 
and especially to the usual practice of all creatures in fear; 
but I was so embarassed with my own frightful ideas of 
the thing, that I formed nothing but dismal imaginations 
to myself, even though I was now a great way off it. Some- 
times I fancied it must be the devil; and reason joined in 
with me upon this supposition: for how should any other 
thing in human shape come into the place ^ .Where was the 
vessel that brought them ? What marks were there of any 


104 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


other footsteps ? And how was it possible a man should 
come there ? But then to think that Satan should take 
human shape upon him in such a place, where there could 
be no manner of occasion for it, but to leave the print of 
his foot behind him, and that even for no purpose too, for 
he could not be sure I should see it — this was an amazement 
the other way. I considered that the devil might have 
found out abundance of .other ways to have terrified me 
than this of the simple print of a foot; that as I lived quite 
on the other side of the island, he would never have been 
so simple as to leave a mark in a place where it was ten 
thousand to one whether I should ever see it or not, and in 
the sand too, which the first surge of the sea^ upon a high 
wind, would have defaced entirely. All this seemed incon- 
sistent with the thing itself, and with all the notions we 
usually entertain of the subtlety of the devil. 

Abundance of such things as these assisted to argue me 
out of all apprehensions of its being the devil; and I presently 
concluded then, that it must be some more dangerous creature; 
viz., that it must be some of the savages of the mainland 
over against me, who had wandered out to sea in their 
canoes, and either driven by the currents or by contrary 
winds, had made the island, and had been on shore, but 
were gone away again to sea; being as loath, perhaps, to 
have stayed in this desolate island as I would have been to 
have had them. 

While these reflections were rolling upon my mind, I was 
\^ry thankful in my thoughts, that I was so happy as not 
to be thereabouts at that time, or that theydid not see my 
boat, by which they would have concluded that some inhabi- 
tants had been in the place, and perhaps have searched 
farther for me. Then terrible thoughts racked my imagi- 
nation about their having found my boat, and that there 
were people here; and that, if so, I should certainly have 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


105 


them come again in greater numbers, and devour me; that 
if it should happen that -they should not find me, yet they 
would find my inclosure, destroy all my corn, and carry 
away all my flock of tame goats, and I should perish at last 
for mere want. 

In the middle of these apprehensions it came into my 
thoughts one day that this foot might be the print of my 
own foot, when I came on shore from my boat. This 
cheered me up a little, too, and I began to persuade myself 
it was all a delusion; that it was nothing else but my own 
foot; and why might I not come that way from the boat, as 
well as I was going that way to the boat Again I con- 
sidered also that I could by no means tell for certain where 
I had trod, and where I had not; and that if, at last, this 
was only the print of my own foot, I had played the part 
of those fools who try to make stories of specters and appa- 
ritions, and then are themselves frightened at them more 
than anybody else. 

Now I began to take courage, and to peep abroad again, 
for I had not stirred out of my castle for three days and 
nights, so that I began to starve for provisions; for I had 
little or nothing within doors but some barley-cakes and 
water. Then I knew that rny goats wanted to be milked 
too, which usually was my evening diversion; and the poor 
creatures were in great pain and inconvenience for want of 
it; and, indeed, it almost spoiled some of them, and almost 
dried up their milk. 

Heartening myself, therefore, with the belief that this was 
nothing but the print of one of my own feet, and so I might 
be truly said to start at my own shadow, I began to go 
abroad again, and went to my country-house to milk my 
flock. To see with what fear I went forward, how often 
I looked behind me, how I was ready, every now and then, 
to lay down my basket, and run for my life, it would have 


106 


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made any one have thought I was haunted with an evil 
conscience, or that I had been lately most terribly frightened; 
and so, indeed, I had. However, as I went down thus 
two or three days, and having seen nothing, I began to be 
a little bolder, and to think there was really nothing in it 
but my own imagination. I could not persuade myself 
fully of this till I should go down to the shore again, and 
see this print of a foot, and measure it by my own, and see 
if there was any similitude or fitness, that I might be assured 
it was my own foot. But when I came to the place — first, 
it appeared evidently to me, that when I laid up my boat, 
I could not possibly be on shore anywhere thereabouts; 
secondly, when I came to measure the mark with my owil 
foot, I found my foot not so large by a great deal. Both 
these things filled my head with new imaginations, and 
gave me the vapors again to the highest degree, so that 1 
shook with cold like one in an ague. I went home again, 
filled with the belief that some man or men had been on 
shore there; or, in short, that the island was inhabited, 
and I might be surprised before I was aware; and what 
course to take for my security I knew not. 

The first thing I proposed to myself was, to throw down 
my inclosures, and turn all my tame cattle wild into the 
woods, that the enemy might not find them and then fre- 
quent the island in prospect of the same or the like booty; 
then the simple thing of digging up my two cornfields, 
that they might not find such a grain there, and still be 
prompted to frequent the island; then to demolish my 
bower and tent, that they might not see any vestiges of 
habitation, and be prompted to look farther, in order to 
find out the persons inhabiting. These were the subjects of 
the first night’s cogitations, after I was come home again, 
while the apprehensions which had so overrun my mind were 
fresh upon me, and my head was full of vapors as above. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


107 


The confusion of my thoughts kept me waking all night. 
In the morning I fell asleep. Having by the amusement of 
my mind been, as it were, tired, and my spirits exhausted, I 
slept very soundly, and awaked much better composed 
than I had ever, been before. And now I began to think 
sedately. Upon the utmost debate with myself, I concluded 
that this island (which was so exceeding pleasant, fruitful, 
and no farther frqm the mainland than as I had seen) was 
not so entirely abandoned as I might imagine; that although, 
there were no stated inhabitants who lived on the spot, 
yet that there might sometimes come boats off from the shore, 
who either with design, or perhaps never but when they 
were driven by cross winds, might come to this place; that 
I had lived here fifteen years now, and had not met with 
the least shadow or figure of any people yet; and that, if 
at any time they should be driven here, it was probable 
they went away again as soon as ever they could, seeing 
they had never thought fit to fix here upon any occasion 
to this time; that the most I could suggest any danger 
from was, from any casual accidental landing of straggling 
people from the main, who, as it was likely, if they were 
driven hither, were here against their wills; so they made 
no stay here, but went off again, with all possible spee^, 
seldom staying one night on shore, lest they should not have 
the help of the tides and daylight back again; and that, 
therefore, I had nothing to do but to consider of some safe 
retreat, in case I should see any savages land upon the spot. 

Now I began sorely to repent that I had dug my cave 
so large as to bring a door through again, which door, as 
I said, -came out beyond where my fortification joined to 
the rock. Upon maturely considering this, therefore, I 
resolved to draw me a second fortification, in the same 
manner of a semicircle, at a distance from my wall, just 
where I had planted a double row of trees about twelve 


108 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


years before, of which I made mention. These trees 
having been planted so thick before, there wanted but few 
piles to be driven between them, that they should be thicker 
and stronger, and my wall would be soon finished. So 
that I had now a double wall; and my outer wall was 
thickened with pieces of timber, old cables, and everything 
I could think of to make it strong, having in it seven little 
holes, about as big as I might put my . arm out at. In the 
inside of this, I thickened my wall to about ten feet thick, 
continually bringing earth out of my cave, and laying it 
at the foot of the wall, and walking upon it; and through 
the seven holes I contrived to plant the muskets, of which 
I took notice that I got seven on shore out of the ship; these, 
I say, I planted like my cannon, and fitted them into frames, 
that held them like a carriage, so that I could fire all the 
seven guns in two minutes’ time. This wall I was many 
a weary month in finishing, and yet never thought myself 
safe till it was done. 

When this was done, I stuck all the ground without my 
wall, for a great way every way, as full with stakes or sticks 
of the osier-like wood, which I found so apt to grow, as they 
could well stand; insomuch that I believe I might set in 
near twenty thousand of them, leaving a pretty large space 
between them and my wall, that I might have room to see 
an enemy, and they might have no shelter from the young 
trees, if they attempted to approach my outer wall. 

Thus, in two years’ time, I had a thick grove; and in 
five or six- years’ time I had a wood before my dwelling 
grown so monstrous thick and strong that it was indeed 
perfectly impassable; and no man, of what kind soever, 
would ever imagine that there was anything beyond it, 
much less a habitation. As for the way which I proposed 
to myself to go in or out (for I left no avenue), it was by 
setting two ladders, one to a part of the rock which was 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


109 


low, and then broke in, and left room to place another 
ladder upon that; so when the two ladders were taken 
down, no man living could come down to me without mis- 
chiefing himself; and if they had come down, they were 
still on the outside of my outer wall. 

Thus I took all the measures human prudence could 
suggest for my own preservation; and it will be seen, at 
length, that they were not altogether without just reason; 
though I foresaw nothing at that time more than my mere 
fear suggested to me. 

While this was doing, I was not altogether careless of 
my other affairs. I had a great concern upon me for my 
little herd of goats. They were not only a present supply 
to me upon every occasion, and began to be sufficient for 
me, without the expense of powder and shot, but also abated 
the fatigue of hunting after the wild ones; and I was loath 
to lose the advantage of them, and to have them all to nurse 
up over again. 

For this purpose, after long consideration, I could think 
of but two ways to preserve them: one was to find another 
convenient place to dig a cave under ground, and to drive 
thsm into it every night; and the other was to inclose two 
or three little bits of land, remote one from one another, 
and as much concealed as I could, where I might keep 
about half a dozen young goats in each place; so that if 
any disaster happened to the flock in general, I might be 
able to raise them again with a little trouble and time: 
and this, though it would require a good deal of time and 
labor, I thought was the most rational design. 

Accordingly, I spent some time to find out the most re- 
tired parts of the island; and I pitched upon one which was 
as private indeed as my heart could wish; it was a little 
damp piece of ground, in the middle of the hollow and thick 
woods, where, as is observed, I almost lost myself once 


110 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


before, endeavoring to come back that way from the eastern 
part of the island. Here I found a clear piece of land, 
near three acres, so surrounded with woods that it was 
almost an inclosure by Nature; at least, it did not want 
near so much labor to make it so as the other pieces of 
ground I had worked so hard at. 

I immediately went to work with this piece of ground; 
and, in less than a month’s time, I had so fenced it round 
that my flock, or herd, call it which you please, which were 
not so wild now as at first they might be supposed to be, 
were well enough secured in it. So, without any further 
delay, I removed ten she-goats, and two he-goats, to this 
piece; and, when they were there, I continued to perfect 
the fence, till I had made it as secure as the other; which, 
however, I did at more leisure, and it took me up more 
time by a great deal. 

All this labor I was at the expense of, purely from my 
apprehensions on the account of the print of a man’s foot 
which I had seen: for, as yet, I had never seen any human 
creature come near the island; and I had now lived two 
years under this uneasiness, which, indeed, made my life 
much less comfortable than it was before, as may well be 
imagined by any who know what it is to live in the constant 
snare of the fear of man. 

But to go on: after I had thus secured one part of my 
little living stock, I went about the whole island, searching 
for another private place to make such another deposit; 
when, wandering more to the west point of the island than 
I had ever done yet, and looking out to sea, I thought I 
saw a boat upon the sea, at a great distance. I had found a 
perspective glass or two in one of the seaman’s chests, 
which I saved out of our ship, but I had it not about me; 
and this was so remote that I could not tell what to make 
of it, though I looked at it till my eyes were not able to 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


111 


hold to look any longer: whether it was a boat or not, I do 
not know; but as I descended from the hill I could see no 
more of it, so I gave it over; only I resolved to go no more 
out without a perspective glass in my pocket. 

When I was come down the hill to the end of the island, 
where, indeed, I had never been before, I was presently 
convinced that the seeing the print of a man’s foot was not 
such a strange thing in the island as I imagined; and, but 
that it was a special providence that I was cast upon the 
side of the island where the savages never came, I should 
easily have known that nothing was more frequent than 
for the canoes from the main, when they happened to be 
a little too far out at sea, to shoot over to that side of the 
island for harbor; likewise, as they often met and fought 
in their canoes, the victors, having taken any prisoners, 
would bring them over to this shore, where, according to 
their dreadful customs, being all cannibals, they would 
kill and eat them; of which hereafter. 

When I was come down the hill to the shore, as I said 
above, being the S.W. point of the island, I was perfectly 
confounded and amazed; nor it is possible for me to express 
the horror of my mind, at seeing the shore spread with 
skulls, hands, feet, and other bones of human bodies; and 
particularly, I observed a place -where there had been a 
fire made, and a circle dug in the earth, like a cockpit, 
where I supposed the savage wretches had sat down to 
their inhuman feastings upon the bodies of their fellow 
creatures. 

I was so astonished with the sight of these things that I 
entertained no notions of any danger to myself from it 
for a long while. All my apprehensions were buried in 
the thoughts of such a pitch of inhuman, hellish brutality, 
and the horror of the degeneracy of human nature, which, 
though I had heard of often, yet I never had so near a view 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


m 

of before.- In short, I turned away my face from the horrid 
spectacle. My stomach grew sick.' After having vomited 
with uncommon violence, I was a little relieved, but could 
not bear to stay in the place a moment. I got up the hill 
again with all the speed I could, and walked on towards 
my own habitation. 

I kept close within my own circle for almost two years 
after this. When I say my own circle, I mean by it my 
three plantations, viz., my castle, my country-seat (which 
I called my bower), and my inclosure in the woods. I did 
not look after this for any other use than as an inclosure 
for my goats. The aversion which nature gave me to those 
hellish wretches was such that I was as fearful of seeing 
them as of seeing the devil himself, nor did I so much as 
go to look after my boat in all this time, but began rather 
to think of making me another. I could not think of ever 
making any more attempts to bring the other boat round 
the island to me, lest I should meet with some of those 
creatures at sea; in which case, if I had happened to have 
fallen into their hands, I knew what would have been my lot. 

Time, however, and the satisfaction I had that I was in 
no danger of being discovered by these people, began to 
wear olf my uneasiness about them. I began to live just 
in the same composed manner as before, only with this 
difference, that I used more caution, and kept my eyes 
more about me than I did before, lest I should happen to 
be seen by any of them. 

I had the care of my safety more now upon my hands 
than that of my food. I cared not to drive a nail, or chop 
a stick of wood now, for fear the noise I should make would 
be heard; much less would I fire a gun for the same reason; 
and, above all, I was intolerably uneasy at making any 
fire, lest the smoke, which is visible at a great distance in 
the day, should betray me. For this reason, I removed 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


113 


that part of my business which required fire, such as burning 
of pots and pipes, etc., into my new apartment in the woods, 
where, after I had been some time, I found, to my unspeak- 
able consolation, a mere natural cave in the earth, which 
went in a va^t way, and where, I dare say, no savave, had 
he been at the mouth of it, would be so hardy as to venture 
in; nor, indeed, would any man else, but one who, like me, 
wanted nothing as much as a safe retreat. ■ 

The mouth of this hollow was at the bottom of a great 
rock, where, by mere accident, I was cutting down some 
thick branches of trees to make charcoal; and before I go 
on I must observe the reason of my making this charcoal, 
which was thus: I was afraid of making a smoke about my 
habitation, as I said before; and yet I could not live there 
without baking my bread, cooking my meat, etc.; so I 
contrived to burn some wood here, as I had seen done in 
England, under turf, till it became chark, or dry coal; and 
then putting the fire out, I preserved the coal to carry home 
and perform the other services for which fire was wanting, 
without danger of smoke. This is by the bye. 

While I was cutting down some wood here, I perceived 
that, behind a very thick branch of low brushwood or under- 
wood, there was a kind of hollow place: I was curious to 
look in it; and getting with difficulty into the mouth of it, 
found it was pretty large', that is to say, sufficient for me to 
stand upright ini it, and perhaps another* with me: but I 
must confess to you that I made more haste out than I 
did in, when looking farther into the place, and which was 
perfectly dark, I saw two broad shining eyes of some creature 
— whether devil or man I knew not — which twinkled like 
two stars; the dim light from the cave’s mouth shining 
directly in, and making the reflection. However, after 
some pause, I recovered myself, and began to call myself 
a thousand fools, and to think that he that was afraid to 


114 * 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


see the devil was not fit to live twenty years in an island all 
alone; and that I might well think there was nothing in 
this cave that was more frightful than myself. Upon this, 
plucking up my courage, I took up a firebrand, and in I 
rushed again, with the stick flaming in my harrd: I had not 
gone three steps in, before I was as much frightened as before; 
for I heard a very loud sigh, like that of a man in some 
pain, and it was followed by a broken noise, as of words half 
expressed, and then a deep sigh again. I stepped back, 
and was indeed struck with such a surprise that it put me 



into a cold sweat, and if I had had a' hat on my head, I will 
not answer for it that my hair might not have lifted it olF. 
Still, plucking up my spirits as well as I could, I stepped 
forward again, and -by the dim light of the firebrand, holding 
it up a little over my head, I saw lying on the ground a 
monstrous, frightful old he-goat, just making his will, as 
we say, and gasping for life, and dying indeed of mere old 
age. I stirred him a little to see if I could get him out, and 
he essayed to get up, but he was not able to raise himself; 



ROBINSON CRUSOE 


115 


and I thought with myself he might even lie there; for if 
he had frightened me, so he would certainly fright any of 
the savages, if any one of them should be so hardy as to 
come in there while he had any life in him. 

I was now recovered from my surprise, and began to look 
round me, when I found the cave was but very small, that 
is to say, it might be about twelve feet over, but in no manner 
of shape, neither round nor square, no hands having ever 
been employed in making it but those of mere Nature. I 
observed also that there was a place at the further side of 
it that went in farther, but was so low that it required me 
to creep upon my hands and knees to go into it, and whither 
it went I knew not; so, having no candle, I gave it over 
for that time, but resolved to come again the next day 
provided with candles and a tinder-box, which I had made 
of the lock of one of the muskets, with some wildfire in the 
pan. 

Accordingly, the next day I came provided with six large 
candles of my own making (for I made very good candles 
now of goats’ tallow, but was hard set for candle-wick, 
using sometimes rags or rope-yarn, and sometimes the dried 
rind of a weed like nettles); and going into this low place 
I was obliged to creep upon all fours — as I have said, almost 
ten yards — which, by the way, I thought was a venture bold 
enough, considering that I knew not how far it might go, 
nor what was beyond it. When I had got through the 
strait, I found the roof rose higher up, I believe near twenty 
feet, but never was such a glorious si^ht seen in the island, 
I dare say, as it was to look round the sides and roof of this 
vault or cave; the wall reflected a hundred thousand lights 
to me from my two candles. What it was in the rock — 
whether diamonds, or any other precious stones, or gold 
— which I rather supposed it to be — I knew not. The place 
I was in was a most delightful cavity, or grotto, though 


116 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


perfectly dark; the floor was dry and level, and had a sort 
of a small loose gravel upon it, so that there was no nauseous 
or venomous creatures to be seen, neither was there any 
damp or wet on the sides or roof; the only difficulty in it 
was the entrance — which, however, as it .was a place of 
security, and such a retreat as I wanted, I thought was a 
convenience— so that I was really rejoiced at the discovery, 
and resolved, without any delay, to bring some of those 
things which I was most anxious about to this place! par- 
ticularly, I resolved to bring thither my magazine of powder, 
and all my spare arms, viz., two fowling pieces — for I had 
three in all — and three muskets — for of them I had eight 
in all; so I kept in my castle only five, which stood ready 
mounted like pieces of cannon on my outmost defense, 
and were ready also to take out upon any expedition. Upon 
this occasion of removing my ammunition, I happened to 
open the barrel of powder which I took up out of the sea, 
and which had been wet, and I found that the water had 
penetrated about three or four inches into the powder on 
every side, which caking and growing hard, had preserved 
the inside like a kernal in the shell, so that I had near sixty 
pounds of very good powder in the center of the cask; and 
this was a very agreeable discovery to me at this time; so 
I carried all away thither, never keeping above two or three 
pounds of powder with me in my castle, for fear of a sur- 
prise of any kind; I also carried thither all the lead I had 
left for bullets. 

I fancied myself now like one of the ancient giants who 
were said to live in caves and holes in the rocks, where 
none could come at them; for I persuaded myself, while I 
was here, that if five, hundred savages were to hunt me, 
they could never find me out — or if they did, they would not 
venture to attack me here. The old goat whom I found 
expiring died in the mouth of the cave the next day after I 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


117 


made this discovery; and I found it much easier to dig a 
great hole there, and throw him in and cover him with earth, 
than to drag him out; so I interred him there, to prevent 
offense to my nose. 

I was now in the twenty-third year of residence in this 
island, and was so naturalized to the place and the manner 
of living, that, could I but have enjoyed the certainty that 
no savages would come to the place to disturb me, I could 
have been content to have capitulated for spending the 
rest of my time there, even to the last moment, till I had 
laid me down and died, like the old goat in the cave. I 
had also arrived at some little diversions and amusements 
which made the time pass more pleasantly with me a great 
deal than it did before; first, I had taught my Poll, as I 
noted above, to speak; and he did it so familiarly, and talked 
so articulately and plain, that it was very pleasant to me, 
and he lived with me no less than six-and-twenty years. 
How long he might have lived afterwards I know not, 
though I know they have a notion in the Brazils that they 
live a hundred years. Perhaps some of my Polls may be 
alive there still, calling after poor Robinson Crusoe to this 
day. I wish no ‘Englishman the ill-luck to come there and 
hear them; but if he did he would certainly believe it was 
the devil. My dog was a pleasant and loving companion 
to me for no less than sixteen years of my time, and then died 
of mere old age. As for my cats, they multiplied, as I have 
observed, to that degree that I was obligde to shoot several 
of them at first, to keep them from devouring me and all I 
had; but, at length, when the old ones I brought with me 
were gone, and after some time continually driving them 
from me, and letting them have no provision with me, 
they all tan wild into the woods, except two or three favor- 
ites, which I kept tame, and whose young, when they had 
any, I always drowned; and these were part of my family. 


118 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


Besides these I always kept two or three household kids 
about me, whom I taught to feed out of my hand; and I 
had two more parrots, which talked pretty well, and would 
all call “Robin Crusoe,’’ but none like my first; nor, indeed, 
did I take the pains with any of them that I had done with 
him. I had also several tame sea-fowls, whose names I 
knew not, that I caught upon the shore, and cut their wings; 
and the little stakes which I had planted before my castle- 
wall being now grown up to a good thick grove, these fowls 
all lived among these low trees, and bred there, which was 
very agreeable to me; so that,, as I said above, I began to 
be very well contented with the life I led, if I could have 
been secured from the dread of the savages. But it was 
otherwise directed. 

It was now the month of December, as I said above, in 
my twenty-third year; and this, being the southern solstice 
(for winter I cannot call it), was the particular time of my 
harvest, and required me to be pretty much abroad in the 
fields, when, going out pretty early in the morning, even 
before it was thorough daylight, I was surprised with seeing 
a light of some fire upon the shore, at a distance from me 
of about two miles towards the end of the island where I 
had observed some savages had been, as before, and not 
on the other side, but to my great affliction, it was on my 
side of the island. 

I was indeed terribly surprised at the sight, and stopped 
short within my grove, not daring to go out, lest I might be 
surprised; and yet I had no more peace within, from the 
apprehensions I had that if these savages, in rambling over 
the island, should find my corn standing or cut, or any of 
my works and improvements, they would immediately 
conclude that there were people in the place, and would 
then never rest till they had found me out. In this extrem- 
ity I went back directly to my castle, pulled up the ladder 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


119 


after me, having made all things without look as wild and 
natural as I could. 

Then I prepared myself within, putting myself in a posture 
of defense; 1 loaded all my cannons,- as I called them — 
that is to say, my muskets, which were mounted upon my 
new fortification, and all niy pistols, and resolved to defend 
myself to the last gasp — not forgetting seriously to commend 
myself to the Divine protection, and earnestly to pray to 
God to deliver me out of the hands of the barbarians. And 
in this posture I continued about two hours, and began to 
be impatient for intelligence abroad, for I had no spies to 
send out. After sitting a while longer and musing what I 
should do in this case, I was not able to bear sitting in 
ignorance any longer; so setting up my ladder to the side 
of the hill, where there was a flat place, as I observed before, 
and then pulling the ladder after me, I set it up again, 
and mounted to the top of the hill, and pulling out my 
perspective-glass, which I had taken on purpose, I Did me 
down flat on my belly on the ground, and began to look 
for the place. I presently found there were no less than 
nine naked savages sitting round a small fire they had made, 
not to warm them, for they had no need of that, the weather 
being extremely hot, but, as I supposed, to dress some of 
their barbarous diet of human flesh which they had brought 
with them, whether alive or dead I could not know. 

They had two canoes with them, which they had hauled 
up upon the shore; and as it was then ebb of tide, they 
seemed to me to wait the return of the flood to go away 
again. It is not easy to imagine what confusion this sight 
put me into, especially seeing them come on my side of the 
island, and so near me, too; but when I considered their 
coming must be always with the current of the ebb, I began 
afterwards to be more sedate in my mind, being satisfied 
that I might go abroad with safely all the time of the flood 


120 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


of tide, if they were not on shore before; and having made 
this observation, I went abroad about my harvest work with 
more composure. 

As I expected, so it proved; for, as soon as the tide made 
to the westward, I saw them all take boat and row (or paddle, 
as we call it) away. I should have observed, that for an 
hour or more before they went off they were dancing, and 
I could easily discern their postures and gestures by my glass. 

As soon as I saw them shipped and gone, I took two 
guns upon my shoulders, and two pistols in my girdle, and 
my great sword by my side, without a scabbard, and with 
all the speed I was able to make went away to the hill 
where I had discovered the first appearance of all. As soon 
as I got thither, which was not less than two hours (for I 
could not go apace, being so loaded with arms as I was), I 
perceived thpre had been three canoes more of savages at 
that place. Looking ont farther I saw they were all at sea 
together, making over for the main. This was a dreadful 
sight to me, especially when, going down to the shore, I 
could see the marks of horror which the dismal work they 
had been about had left behind it, viz., the blood, the bones, 
and part of the flesh of human bodies eaten and devoured 
by those wretches with merriment and sport. I was so 
filled with indignation at the sight, that I now began to 
premeditate the destruction of the next that I saw there, 
let them be whom or how many soever. It seemed evident 
to me that the visits which they made thus to this island 
\vere not very frequent, for it was about fifteen months 
before any more of them came on shore there again — that 
is to say, I neither saw them nor any footsteps or signals of 
them in all that time; for as to the rainy seasons, then they 
are sure not to come abroad, at least not so far. Yet all this 
while I lived uncomfortably, by the reason of the constant 
apprehension of their coming upon me by surprise — from 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


121 


whence I observe that the expectation of evil is more bitter 
than the suffering, especially if there is no room to shake 
off that expectation or those apprehensions. 

During all this time I was in the murdering humor, and 
spent most of my hours, which should have been better 
employed, in contriving how to circumvent and fall upon 
them the very next time I should see them — especially if 
they should be divided, as they were the last time, into two 
parties; nor did I consider at all that if I killed one party — 
suppose ten or a dozen, — I was still the next day, or week, 
or month, to kill another, and so another, even ad infinitum, 
till I should be, at length, no less a murderer than they were 
in being man-eaters — and perhaps much more so. I spent 
my days now in great perplexity and anxiety of mind, ex- 
pecting that I should one day or other fall into the hands of 
these merciless creatures; and if I did at any time venture 
abroad, it was not without looking around me with the 
greatest care. and caution imaginable. And now I found, 
to my great comfort, how happy it was that I had provided 
a tame flock, or herd, of goals; for I durst not upon any 
account fire my gun, especially near that side of the island 
where they usually came, lest I should alarm the savages; 
and if they had fled from me now, I was sure to have them 
come again with perhaps two or three hundred canoes with 
them in a few days, and then I knew what to’ expect. How- 
ever, I wore out a year and three months more before I ever 
saw any more of the savages, and then I found them again, 
as I shall soon observe. It is true they might have been 
there once or twice, but either they made no stay, or at least 
I did not hear them; but, in the month of May, as near as 
I could calculate, and in my four-and-twentieth year, I had 
a very strange encounter with them; of which in its place. 

The perturbation of my mind, during this fifteen or six- 
teen months’ interval was very great; I slept unquietly. 


122 


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dreamed always frightful dreams, and often started out of 
my sleep in the night. In the day, great troubles over- 
whelmed my mind; and in the night, I dreamed often of 
killing the savages, and of the reasons why I might justify 
the doing of it. But to waive all this for a while. It was in 
the middle of May, on the sixteenth day, I think, as well as 
my poor wooden calendar would reckon, for I marked all 
upon the post still; I say, it was on the sixteenth day of May 
that it blew a very great storm of wind all day, with a great 
deal of lightning and thunder, and a very foul night it was 
after it. I knew not what was the particular occasion of it; 
but as I was reading the Bible, and taken up with very 
serious thoughts about my present condition, I was surprised 
with the noise of a gun, as I thought, fired at sea. This was, 
to be sure, a surprise of a quite different nature from any I 
had met with before; for the notions this put into my 
thoughts were quite of another kind. I started up in the 
greatest haste imaginable; and, in a trice, clapped my 
ladder to the middle place of the rock, and pulled it after 
me; and, mounting it the second time, got to the top of the 
hill the very moment that a flash of fire bid me listen for a 
second gun, which accordingly, in about half a minute, I 
heard; and by the sound, knew that it was from that part 
of the sea where I was driven out with the current in my 
boat. I immediately considered that this must be some 
ship in distress, and that they had some comrade, or some 
other ship in company, and fired these for signals of distress, 
and to obtain help. I had the presence of mind, at that 
piinute, to think, that though I could not help them, 
it might be they might help me; so I brought together 
all the dry wood I could get at hand, and, making a good 
handsome pile, I set it on fire upon the hill. The wood 
was dry, and blazed freely; and though the wind blew very 
hard, yet it burned fairly out, so that I was certain, if there 


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was any such thing as a ship, they must need see it, and no 
doubt they did; for as soon as ever my fire blazed up, I 
heard another gun, and after that several others, all from 
the same quarter. I plied my fire all night long, till day- 
break; and when it was broad day, and the air cleared up, 
I saw something at a great distance at sea, full east of the 
island, whether a sail or a hull I could not distinguish — 
no, not with my glass; the distance was so great, and the 
weather still something hazy also — at least, it was so out at 
sea. 

I looked frequently at it all that day, and soon perceived 
that it did not move. I presently concluded that it was a 
ship at anchor; and being eager, you may be sure, to be 
satisfied, I took my gun in my hand, and ran towards the 
south side of the island, to the rocks where I had formerly 
been carried away with the current; and getting up there, 
the weather by this time being perfectly clear, I could plainly 
see, to my great sorrow, the wreck of a ship, cast away in 
the night upon those concealed rocks which I found when 
I was out in my boat; and which rocks, as they checked the 
violence of the stream, and made a kind of counter-stream, 
or eddy, were the occasion of my recovering from the most 
desperate, hopeless condition that ever I had been in in all 
my life. Thus, what is one man’s safety is another’s man 
destruction; for it seems these men, whoever they were, 
being out of their knowledge, and the rocks being wholly 
under water, had been driven upon them in the night, the 
wind blowing hard at E. and E.N.E. Had they seen the 
island, as I must necessarily suppose they did not, they 
must, as I thought, have endeavored to have saved them- 
selves on shore by the help of their boat; but their firing off 
their guns for help, especially when they saw, as I imagined, 
my fire, filled me with many thoughts. First, I imagined 
that upon seeing my light, they might have put themselves^ 


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into their boat, and endeavored to make the shore; but 
that the sea running very high, they might have been cast 
away. Other times, I imagined that they might have lost 
their boat before, as might be the case many ways; as par- 
ticularly, by the breaking of the sea upon their ship, which 
many times obliged men to stave, or take in pieces, their 
boat,* and sometimes to throw it overboard with their own 
hands. Other times, I imagined they had some other ship 
or ships in company, who, upon the signals of distress 
they made, had taken them up and carried them off*. Other 
times, I fancied they were all gone off to sea in their boat, 
and being carried away by the current that I had been for- 
merly in, were carried out into the great ocean, where there 
was nothing but misery and perishing; and that, perhaps, 
they might by this time think of starving, and of being in a 
condition to eat one another. 

As all of these were but conjectures at best, so, in the 
condition I was in, I could do no more than look on upon 
the misery of the poor men, and pity them; which had still 
this good effect upon my side, that it gave me more and 
more cause to give thanks to God, who had so happily and 
comfortably provided for me in my desolate condition; and 
that of two ships’ companies, who were now cast away upon 
this part of the world, not one life should be spared but 
mine. I learned here again to observe, that it is very rare 
that the providence of God casts us into any condition of 
life so low, or any misery so great, but we may see something 
or other to be thankful for, and may see others in worse 
cjrcumstances than our own. Such certainly was the case 
of these men, of whom I could not so much as see room to 
suppose any of them were saved; nothing could make it 
rational so much as to wish or expect that they did not all 
perish there, except the possibility only of their being taken 
up by another ship in company; and this was but mere 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


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possibility indeed, for I saw not the least signal or appearance 
of any such thing. I cannot explain, by any possible energy 
of words, what a strange longing I felt in my soul upon this 
sight, breaking out sometimes thus: “Oh, that there had 
been but one or two, nay, or but one soul, saved out of this 
ship, to have escaped to me, that I might but have one 
companion, one fellow-creature, to have spokeri to me and 
to have conversed with!” In all the time of my solitary 
life, I never felt so earnest, so strong a desire after the 
society of my fellow-creatures, or so deep a regret at the 
want of it. 

It was now calm, and I had a great mind to venture out in 
my boat to this wreck, not doubting but I might find some- 
thing on board that might be useful to me. But that did tiot 
altogether 'press me so much as the possibility that there 
might be yet some living creature on board, whose life I 
might not only save, but might, by saving that life, comfort 
my own to the last degree; and this thought clung so to 
my heart that I could not be quiet night or day; but I must 
venture out in my boat oh board this wreck; and com- 
mitting the rest to God’s providence, I thought the impression 
was so strong upon my mind that it could not be resisted, 
that it must come from some invisible direction, and that I 
should be wanting to myself if I did not go. 

Under the power of this impression, I hastened back to 
my castle, prepared everything for my voyage, took a quan- 
tity of bread, a great pot for fresh water, a compass to steer 
by, a bottle of rum (for I had still a great deal of that left), 
and a basket of raisins; and thus loading myself with every- 
thing necessary, I went down to my boat, got the water out 
of her, got her afloat, loaded all my cargo in her, and then 
went home again for more. My second cargo was a great 
bag full of rice, the umbrella to set up over my head for a 
shade, another large pot full of fresH water, and about 


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two dozen of small loaves, or barley-cakes, more than before, 
with a bottle of goat’s milk, and a cheese; all which, with 
great labor and sweat, I brought to my boat; and praying 
to God to direct my voyage, I put out, and, rowing or pad- 
dling the canoe along the shore, came at last to the utmost 
point of the island on the northeast side. And now I was 
to launch but into the ocean, and either to venture or not 
to venture. I looked on the rapid currents which ran con- 
stantly on both sides of the island at a distance, and which 
were very terrible to me, from the remembrance of the 
hazard I had been in before, and my heart began to fail me; 
for I foresaw that if I was driven into either of those currents, 
I should be carried a great way out to sea and perhaps out 
of my reach, or sight of the island again; and that then, as 
my boat was but small if any little gale of wind should rise, 
I should be inevitably lost. 

These thoughts so oppressed my mind, that I began to 
give over my enterprise; and having hauled my boat into a 
little creek on the shore, I stepped out, and sat down upon a 
rising bit of ground, very pensive and anxious, between fear 
and desire about my voyage; when, as I was musing, I 
could perceive that the tide was turned, and the flood came 
on; upon which, my going was impracticable for so many 
hours. Upon this, presently it occurred to me that I should 
go up to the highest piece of ground I could find, and observe, 
if I could, how the sets of the tide, or currents lay, when the 
flood came in, that I might judge whether, if I was driven 
one way out, I might not expect to be driven another way 
home, with the same rapidity of the currents. This thought 
was no sooner in my head than I cast my eye upon a little 
hill, which sufficiently overlooked the sea both ways, and 
from whence I had a clear view of the currents, or sets of 
the tide, and which way I was to guide myself in my return. 
Here I found that as the current of ebb set out close by the 


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127 


south point of the island, so the current of the flood set in 
close by the shore of the north side; and that I had nothing 
to do but to keep to the north of the island in my return, and 
I should do well enough. 

Encouraged with this observation, I resolved, the next 
morning, to set out with the first of the tide; and reposing 
myself for the night in my canoe, under the great watch- 
coat I mentioned, I launched out. I first made a little out 
to sea, full north, till 1 began to feel the benefit of the current, 
which set eastward, and which carried me at a great rate; 
and yet did not so hurry me as the current on the south side 
had done before, so as to take from me all government of 
the boat; but having a strong steerage with my ‘paddle, I 
went, at a great rate, directly for the wreck, and in less than 
two hours I came up to it. It was a dismal sight to look at: 
the ship, which, by its building, was Spanish, stuck fast, 
jammed in between two rocks; all the stern and quarter 
of her were beaten to pieces by the sea; and as her fore- 
castle, which stuck in the rocks, had run on with great 
violence, her mainmast and forem.ast were brought by the 
board — that is to say, broken short off; but her bowsprit was 
sound, and the head and bow appeared firm. When I 
came close to her, a dog appeared upon her, who, seeing me 
coming, yelped and cried; and, as soon as I called him, 
jumped into the sea to come to me. I took him into the 
boat, but found him almost dead with hunger and thirst. 
I gave him a cake of my bread, and he devoured it like a 
ravenous wolf that had been starving a fortnight in the 
snow; I then gave the poor creature some fresh water, 
with which, if I would have let him, he would have burst 
himself. After this I went on board; but the first sight I 
met with was two men drowned in the cook-room, or fore- 
castle, of the ship, with their arms fast about one another. 
I concluded, as is indeed probable, that when the ship 


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struck, it being in a storm, the sea broke so high and so 
continually over her, that the men were not able to bear 
it, and were strangled with the constant rushing in of the 
water, as much as if they had been under water. Besides 
the dog, there was nothing left in the ship that had life; 
nor any goods, that I could see, but what were spoiled by 
the water. There were several chests, which I believe 
belonged to some of the seamen; and I got two of them into 
the boat, without examining what was in them. Had the 
stern of the ship been fixed, and the forepart broken off, I 
am persuaded I might have made a good voyage; for, by 
what I found in these two chests, 1 had room to suppose 
the ship had a good deal of wealth on board; and, if I may 
guess from the course she steered, she must have been 
bound from Buenos Ayres, or the Rio de la Plata, in the 
south part of America, beyond the Brazils to the Havannah, 
in the Gulf of Mexico, and so perhaps to Spain. She had, 
no doubt, a great treasure in her, but of no use, at that time, 
to anybody; but what became of the crew I then knew not. 

There were several muskets in the cabin, and a great 
powder horn, with about four pounds of powder in it; as 
for the muskets, I had no occasion for them, so I left them, 
but took the powder-horn. I took a fire-shovel and tongs, 
which I wanted extremely; as also two little brass kettles, a 
copper pot to make chocolate, and a gridiron. With this 
cargo, and the dog, I came away, the tide beginning to make 
home again; and the same evening, about an hour within 
night, I reached the island again, weary and fatigued to 
the last degree. P reposed that night in the boat; and in 
the morning I resolved to harbor what I had got in my new 
cave, and not carry it home to my castle. After refreshing 
myself, I got all my cargo on shore, and began to examine 
the particulars. When I came to open the chests, I found 
several things of great use to me. I found some very good 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


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shirts, which were very welcome to me; and about a dozen 
and a half of white linen handkerchiefs and colored neck- 
cloths. When I came to the till in the chest, I found there 
three great bags of pieces of eight, which held about eleven 
hundred pieces in all; and in one of them, wrapped up in a 
paper, six doubloons of gold, and some small bars’ or wedges 
of gold; I suppose they might all weigh near a pound. In 
the other chest were some clothes, but of little value; but, 
by the circumstances, it must have belonged to the gunner’s 
mate; though there was no powder in it, except two pounds 
of fine glazed powder, in three small flasks, kept, I suppose, 
for charging their fowling pieces on occasion. Upon the 
whole, I got very little by this voyage that was of any use to 
me; for as to the money, I had no manner of occasion for it: 
it was to me as the dirt under my feet, and I would have 
given it all for three or four pair of English shoes and stock- 
ings, which were things I greatly wanted, but had none on 
my feet for many years. I had, indeed, got two pair of 
shoes now, which I took off the feet of the two drowned men 
whom I saw in the wreck, and I found two pair more in one 
of the chests, which were very welcome to me; but they 
were not like our English shoes, either for ease or service, 
being rather what we call pumps than shoes. I found in 
this seaman’s chest about fifty pieces of eight, in rials, but 
no gold. I suppose this belonged to a poorer man than the 
other, which seemed to belong to some officer. Well, 
however, I lugged this money home to my cave, and laid 
it up, as I had done that before which I had brought from 
our own ship; but it was a great pity, as I said, that the 
other part of this ship had not come to my share; for I am 
satisfied I might have loaded my canoe several times over 
with money; which, if I had ever escaped to England, 
would have lain here safe enough till I might have come 
again and fetched it. 


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Having now brought all my things on shore and secured 
them, I went back to my boat, and rowed or paddled her 
along the shore to her old harbor where I laid her up, and 
made the best of my way to my old habitation, where I 
found everything safe and quiet. I began now to repose 
myself, live after my old fashion, and take care of my family 
affairs; and for a while I lived easy enough, only that I was 
more vigilant than I used to be, looked out oftener, and did 
not go abroad so much; and if, at any time, I did stir with 
any freedom, it was always to the east part of the island, 
where I was pretty well satisfied the savages never came, 
and where I could go without so many percautions, and 
such a load of arms and ammunition as I always carried 
with me if I went the other way. 

I am now to be supposed retired into my castle, after my 
late voyage to the wreck, my frigate laid up and secured under 
water, as usual, and my condition restored to what it was 
before. I had more wealth, indeed, than I had before, 
but was not at all the richer; for I had no more use for it 
than the Indians of Peru had before the Spaniards came there. 

It was one of the nights in the rainy season in March, 
the four-and-twentieth year of my first setting foot in this 
island of solitude. I was lying in my bed or hammock. I 
dreamed that as I was going out in the morning, as usual, 
from my castle, I saw upon the shore two canoes and eleven 
savages, coming to land, and that they brought with them 
another savage, whom they were going to kill, in order to 
eat him; when,, on a sudden, the savage that they were 
going to kill jumped away, and ran for his life; then I 
thought, in my sleep, that he came running into my little 
thick grove before my fortification, to hide himself; and 
that I, seeing him alone, and not perceiving that the others 
sought him that way, showed myself to him, and, smiling 
upon him, encouraged him; that he kneeled down to me. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


131 


jeeming to pray me to assist him; upon which I showed him 
my ladder, made him go up it, and carried him into my 
cave, and he became my servant; and that as soon as I had 
got this man, I said to myself, ‘‘Now I may certainly venture 
to the mainland, for this fellow will serve me as a pilot, 
and will tell me what to do, and whither to go for provisions, 
and whither not to go for fear of being devoured; what 
places to venture into and what to escape.” I waked with 
this thought; and was under such inexpressible impressions 
of joy at the prospect of my escape in my dream, that the 
disappointments which I felt upon coming to myself, and 
finding that it was no more than a dream, were equally 
extravagant the other way, and threw me into a good dejec- 
tion of spirits. 

Upon this, however, I made this conclusion: that my only 
way to go about an attempt for an escape was, if possible, 
to get a savage into my possession; and, if possible, it should 
be one of their prisoners, whom they had condemned to be 
eaten, and should bring hither to kill. So I resolved to put 
myself upon the watch, to see them when they came on shore, 
and leave the rest to the event; taking such measures as 
the opportunity should present, let be what would be. 

With these resolutions in my thoughts, I set myself upon 
the scout as often as possible, and indeed so often that I 
was heartily tired of it; for it was above a year and a half 
that I waited; and for a great part of that time went out to 
the west end, and to the southwest corner of the island 
almost every day, to look for canoes, but none appeared. 
This was very discouraging, and began to trouble me much, 
though I cannot say that it did in this case (as it had done 
some time before) wear off the edge of my desire to the 
thing; but the longer it seemed to be delayed, the rnore 
eager I was for it; in a word, I was not at first so careful 
to shun the sight of these savages, and avoid being seen by 


132 


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them, as I was now eager to be upon them. Besides, I 
fancied myself able to manage one, nay, two or three savages, 
if I had them, so as to make them entirely slaves to me, to 
do whatever I should direct them, and to prevent their being 
able at any time to do me any hurt. It was a great while 
that I pleased myself with this affair; but nothing still pre- 
sented; all my fancies and schemes came to nothing, for 
no savages came near me for a great while. 

About a year and a half after I entertained these notions 
(and by long musing had, as it were, resolved them all 
into nothing, for want of an occasion to put them in execu- 
tion), I was surprised one morning early by seeing no less 
than five canoes all on shore together on my side the island, 
and the people who belonged to them all landed and out of 
my sight. The number of them broke all my measures; 
for seeing so many, and knowing that they always came 
four or six, or sometimes more, in a boat, I could not tell 
what to think of it, or how to take my measures to attack 
twenty or thirty men single-handed ^ so lay still in my 
castle, perplexed and discomforted. However, I put myself 
into all the same postures for an attack that I had formerly 
provided, and was just ready for action, if anything had 
presented. Having waited a good while, listening to hear 
if they made any noise, at length, being very impatient, I 
set my guns at the foot of my ladder, and clambered up 
to the top of the hill, by my two stages, as usual; standing 
so, however, that my head did not appear above the hill, so 
that they could not perceive me by any means. Here I 
observed, by the help of my perspective glass, that they were 
no less than thirty in number; that they had a fire kindled, 
and that they had meat dressed. How they had cooked it, 
I know not, or what it was; but they were all dancing, in 
I know not how many barbarous gestures and figures, their 
own way, round the fire. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


133 


While I was thus looking on them, I perceived, by my 
perspectives, two miserable wretches dragged from the 
boats, where, it sterns, they were laid by, and were now 
brought out for the slaughter. I perceived one of them 
immediately fall; being knocked down, I suppose, with a 
club or wooden sword, for that was their way; and two or 
three others were at work immediately, cutting him open 
for their cookery, while the other victim was left standing 
by himself, till they should be ready for him. In that very 
moment, this poor wretch, seeing himself a little at liberty, 
and unbound. Nature inspired him with hopes of life, and 



he started away from them, and ran with incredible swiftness 
along the sands, directly towards me; I mean towards that 
part of the coast where my habitation was. I was dread- 
fully frightened, that I must acknowledge, when I perceived 
him run my way; and especially when, as I thought, I saw 
him pursued by the whole body; and now I expected that 
part of my dream was coming to pass, and that he would 
certainly take shelter in my grove; but I could not depend, 
by any means, upon my dream, that the other savages would 
not pursue him thither, and find him there. However, I 
kept my station, and my spirits began to recover when I 


134 


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found that there was not above three men that followed him; 
and still more was encouraged, when I found that he out- 
stripped thern exceedingly in running, and gained ground 
on them; so that, if he could but hold it for half an hour, 
I saw easily he would fairly get away from them all. 

There was, between them and my castle, the creek, which 
I mentioned often in the first part of my story, where I 
landed my cargoes out of the ship; and this I saw plainly 
he must necessarily swim over or the poor wretch would 
be taken there; but when the savage escaping came thither, 
he made nothing of it, though the tide was then up; but, 
plunging in, swam through in about thirty strokes, or 
thereabouts, landed, and ran with exceeding strength and 
swiftness. When the three persons came to the creek I 
found that two of them could swim, but the third could not, 
and that, standing on the other side, he looked at the others, 
but went' no farther, and soon after went softly back again; 
which, as it happened,- was very well for him in the end. 
I observed that the two who swam were yet more than twice 
as long swimming over the creek than the fellow was that 
fled from them. It came very warmly upon my thoughts 
and indeed irresistibly, that now was the time to get me a 
servant, and perhaps a companion or assistant; and that I 
was plainly called by Providence to save this poor creature’s 
life. I immediately ran down the ladder with all possible 
expedition, fetched my two guns, for they were both at the 
foot of the ladder, as I observed before and getting up again 
with the same haste to the top of the hill, I crossed towards 
the sea; and having a very short cut, and all down hill, 
clap’d myself in the way between the pursuers and the 
pursued, halooing aloud to him that fled, who, looking back, 
was at first perhaps as much frightened at me as at them; 
but I beckoned with my hand to him to come back; and, in 
the meantime, I slowly advanced towards the two that 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


135 


followed; then rushing at once upon the foremost, I knocked 
him down with the stock of my piece. I was loth to fire, 
because I would not have the rest hear; though at that dis- 
tance it would not have been easily heard, and being out of 
sight of the smoke, too, they would not have known what 
to make of it. Having knocked this* fellow down, the other 
who pursued him stopped, as if he had been frightened, and 
I advanced towards him; but as I came nearer, I perceived 
presently he had a bow and arrow, and was fitting it. to 
shoot at me; so I was then obliged to shoot at him first, 
which I did, and killed him at the first shot. 

The poor savage who fled, but had stopped, though he 
saw both his enemies fallen and killed, as he thought, yet 
was so frightened with the fire and noise of my piece that he 
stood stock still, and neither came forward nor went back- 
ward, though he seemed rather inclined still to fly than to 
come on. I hallooed again to him, and made signs to come 
forward, which he easily understood, and came a little way; 
then stopped again, and then a little farther, and stopped 
again; and, I could then perceive that he-stood trembling, 
as if he had been taken prisoner, and had just been to be 
killed, as his two enemies were. I beckoned to him again 
to come to me, and gave him all the signs of encouragement 
that I could think of; and he came nearer and nearer, 
kneeling down every ten or twelve steps, in token of acknowl- 
edgement for saving his life. I smiled at him, and looked 
pleasantly, and beckoned to him to come still nearer; at 
length, he came .close to me; and then he kneeled down 
again, kissed the ground, and laid his head upon the ground, 
and, taking me by the foot, set my foot upon his head; 
this, it seems, was in token of swearing to be my slave 
forever. I took him up, and made much of him, and 
encouraged him all I could. But there was more work to 
do yet; for I perceived the savage whom I had knocked 


136 


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down was hot killed, but stunned with the blow, and began 
to come to himself. So I pointed to him, and showed him 
the savage, that he was not dead; upon this he spoke some 
words to me, and though I could not understand them, 
yet I thought they were pleasant to hear; for they were 
the first sound of a man’s voice that I had heard, my own 
excepted, for above twenty-five years. But there was no 
time for such reflections now; the savage who was knocked 
down recovered himself so far as to sit up upon the ground, 
and I perceived that my savage began to be afraid; but 
when I saw that, I presented my other piece at the man, as 
if I would shoot him; upon this my savage, for so I call 
him now, made a motion to me to lend him my sword, 
which hung naked in a belt by my side, which I did. He 
no sooner had it, but he runs to his enemy, and at one blow 
cut off his head as cleverly, jio executioner in Germany 
could have done it sooner or better; which I thought very 
strange for one who, I had reason to believe, never saw a 
sword in his life before, except their own wooden swords; 
however, it seems, as I learned afterwards, they rhake their 
wooden swords so sharp, so heavy, and the wood is so hard, 
that they will even cut oiT heads with them, ay, and arms, 
and that at one blow too. When he had done this, he comes 
laughing to me in sign of triumph, and brought me the 
sword again, and with abundance of gestures which I did 
not understand, laid it down, with the head of the savage 
that he had killed just before me. But that which astonished 
him most, was to know how I killed the other Indian so 
far off; so pointing to him, he made signs to me to let him 
go to him; and I bade him go, as well as I could. When 
he came to him, he stood like one amazed, looking at him, 
turning him first on one side, then on the other; looked at 
the wound the bullet had made, which it seems was just in his 
breast, where it had made a hole, and no great quantity of 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


137 


blood had followed; but he had bled inwardly, for he was 
quite dead. He took up his bow and arrows, and came 
back; so I turned to go away, and beckoned him to follow 
me, making signs to him that more might come after them. 

Upon this he made signs to me that he should bury them 
with sand, that they might not be seen by the rest, if they 
followed; and so I made signs to him again to do so. He 
fell to work; and in an instant he had scraped a hole in 
the sand with his hands, big enough to bury the first in, 
and then dragged him into it, and covered him; and did so 
by the other also; I believe he had buried them both in a 
quarter of an hour. Then calling him away, I carried him, 
not .to my castle, but quite away to my cave, on the farther 
•part of the island; so I did not let my dream come to pass 
in that part, that he came into my grove for shelter. Here 
I gave him bread and a bunch of raisins to eat, and a draught 
of water, which I found he was indeed in great distress 
for from his running; and having refreshed him, I made 
signs for him to go and lie down to sleep, showing him a 
place where I had laid some rice straw, and a blanket upon 
it, which I used to sleep upon myself sometimes; so the 
poor creature lay down, and went to sleep. 

He was a comely, handsome fellow, perfectly well made, 
with straight, strong limbs, not too large, tall and well 
shaped.; and, as I reckon, about twenty-six years of age. 
He had a very good countenance, not a fierce and surly 
aspect, but seemed to have something very manly in his 
face; and yet he had all the sweetness and softness of a 
European in his countenance, too, especially when he 
smiled. His hair was long and black, not curled like wool;. 
his forehead very high and large; and a great vivacity and 
sparkling sharpness in his eyes. The color of his skin was 
not quite black, but very tawny; and yet not an ugly, yellow, 
nauseous tawny, as the Brazilians and Virginians, and 


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other natives of America are, but of a bright kind of a dun 
olive-color, that had in it something very agreeable, though 
not very easy to describe. His face v^as round and plump; 
his nose small, not flat like the negroes; a very good mouth, 
thin lips, and his fine teeth well set, and as white as ivory. 

After he had slumbered, rather than slept, about half- 
an-hour, he awoke again, and came out of the cave to me, 
for I had been milking my goats, which I had in the inclosure 
just by; when he espied me, he came running to me, laying 
himself down again upon the ground, with all the possible 
signs of an humble, thankful disposition, making a great 
many antic gestures to show it. At last he lays his head 
flat upon the ground, close to. my foot, and sets my other ^ 
foot upon his head, as he had done before; and after this, 
made all the signs to me of subjection, servitude, and sub- 
mission imaginable, to let me know how he would serve 
me so long as he lived. I understood h m in many things, 
and let him know I was very well pleased with him. In a 
little time I began to speak to him, and teach him to speak 
to me; and, first, I let him know his name should be Friday, 
which was the day I saved his life; I called him so for the 
memory of the time. I likewise taught him to say Master, 
and then let him know that was to be my name; I likewise 
taught him to say Yes and No, and to know the meaning 
of them. I gave him some milk in an earthen pot, and let 
him see me drink it before him, and sop my bread in it; 
and gave him a cake of bread to do the like, which he quickly 
complied with, and made signs that it was very good* for 
him. I kept tliere with him all that night; but, as soon as 
it was day, I beckoned to him to come with me, and let him 
know I would give him some clothes; at which he seemed 
very glad, for he was stark naked. As we went by the 
place where he had buried the two men, he pointed exactly 
to the place, and showed me the marks that he had made 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


139 


to find them again, making signs to me that we should dig 
them up again and eat them. At this I appeared very 
angry, expressed my abhorrence of it, made as if I would 
vomit at the thoughts of it, and beckoned with my hand 
to him to come away, which he did immediately, with great 
submission. I then led h m up to the top of the hill, to see if 
his enemies were gone, and pulling out my glass, I looked, 
and saw plainly the place where they had been, but no 
appearance of them or their canoes; so that it was plain 
they were gone, and had left their two comrades behind 
them, without any search after them. 

But I was not content with this discovery; but, having 
now more courage, and consequently more curiosity, I took 
my man Friday with me, giving him the sword in his hand, 
with the bow and arrows at his back, which I found he could 
use very dexterously, making him carry one gun for me, and 
I two for myself; and away we marched to the place where 
these creatures had been — for I had a mind now to get 
some fuller intelligence of them. When I came to the 
place, my very blood ran chill in my veins, and my heart 
sunk within me at the horror of the spectacle; indeed, it 
was a dreadful sight; at least it was so to me, though Friday 
made nothing of it. The place was covered with human 
bones, the ground dyed with the blood, and great pieces of 
flesh left here and there, half-eaten, mangled, and scorched; 
and, in short, all the tokens of the triumphant feast they 
had been making there, after a victory over their enemies. 
I saw three skulls, five hands, and the bones of three or 
four legs and feet, and abundance of other parts of the 
bodies; and Friday, by his signs, made me understand that 
they brought over four prisoners to feast upon; that three 
of them were eaten up and that he, pointing to himself, 
was the fourth; that there had been a great battle between 
them and their next king, of whose subjects, it seems, he 


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ROBINSON CRUSOE 


had been one, and that they had taken a great number of 
prisoners; .all which were carried to several places by those 
who had taken them in the fight, in order to feast upon 
them, as was done here by these wretches upon those they 
brought hither. 

I caused Friday to gather all the skulls, bones, flesh, and 
whatever remained, and lay them together on a heap, and 
make a great fire upon it, and burn them all to ashes. I 
found Friday had still a hankering stomach after some of 
the flesh, and was still a cannibal in his nature; but I dis- 
covered so much abhorrence at the very thoughts of it, 
and at the least appearance of it, that he durst not discover 
it — for I had, by some means, let him know that I would 
kill him if he offered it. 

When he had done this we came back to our castle, and 
there I fell to work for my man Friday; and, first of all, I 
gave him a pair of linen drawers, which I had out of the 
poor gunner’s chest I mentioned, which I found in the 
wreck, and which, with a little alteration, fitted him very 
well; and then I made him a jerkin of goat’s skin, as well 
as my skill would allow (for I was now grown a tolerably 
good tailor); and I gave him a cap which I made of hare’s 
skin, very convenient, and fashionable enough, and thus 
he was clothed, for the present, tolerably well, and was 
mighty well pleased to see himself almost as well clothed as 
his master. It is true, he went awkwardly in these clothes 
at first; wearing the drawers was very awkward to him, 
and the sleeves of the waistcoat galled his shgulders and 
the inside of his arms — but a little easing them where he 
complanied they hurt him, and using himself to them, at 
length he took to them very well. 

The next day, after I came home to my hutch with him, 
I began to consider where I should lodge him; and, that I 
might do well for him, and yet be perfectly easy myself. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


141 


I made a little tent for him in the vacant place between 
my two fortifications, in the inside of the last, and in the 
outside of the first, As there was a door or entrance there 
into my cave, I made a formal framed door-case, and a 
door to it of boards, and set it up in the passage, a little 
within the entrance; and, causing. the door to open in the 
inside, I barred it up in the night, taking in my ladders, 
too; so that Friday could no way come at me in the inside 
of my innermost wall, without making so much noise in 
getting over that it must needs awaken me; for my first 
wall had now a complete roof over it of long poles, covering 
all my tent, and leaning up to the side of the hill; which 
was again laid across with smaller sticks, instead of laths, 
and then latched over a great thickness with the rice-straw, 
which was strong, like reeds; and at the hole or place 
which was left to go in or out by the ladder, I had placed a 
kind of trap-door, which, if it had been attempted on the 
outside, would not have opened at all, but would have fallen 
down and made a great noise; as to weapons, I took them 
all into my side every night. But I needed none of all this 
precaution; for never man had a more faithful, loving, 
sincere servant than Friday was to me; without passions, 
sullenness, or designs, perfectly obliged and engaged; his 
very affections were tied to me like those of a child to a 
father; and I dare say he would have sacrificed his life for 
saving mine, upon any occasion whatsoever: the many 
testimonies he gave me of this put it out of doubt, and soon 
convinced me that I needed no precautions for my safety 
on his account. 

I was greatly delighted with him, my new companion, and 
made it my business to teach him everything that was proper 
to make him useful, handy, and helpful; but especially to 
make him speak, and understand me when I spoke; and he 
was the aptest scholar that ever was; and particularly was 


142 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


so merry, so constantly diligent, and so pleased when he 
could but understand me, or make me understand him, 
that it was very pleasant to me to talk to him. And now my 
life began to be so easy that I began to say to myself, that 
could I but have been safe from more savages, I cared not 
if I was never to remove from the place while I lived. 

After I had been two or three days returned to my castle, 
I thought that, in order to bring Friday off* from his horrid 
way of feeding, and from the relish of a cannibal’s stomach, 
I ought to let him taste other flesh; so I took him out with 
me one morning to the woods. I \yent, indeed, intending 
to kill a kid out of my own flock, and bring it home and dress 
it; but as I was going, I saw a she-goat lying down in the 
shade, and two young kids sitting by her. I catched hold 
of Friday. ‘‘Hold,” said I, “stand still”; and made signs 
to him not to stir; immediately I presented my piece, shot 
and killed one of the kids. The poor creature, who had, at 
a distance, indeed, seen me kill the savage, his enemy, 
but did not know, nor could imagine, how it was done, was 
sensibly surprised; trembled and shook, and looked so 
amazed that I thought he would have sunk down. He did 
not see the kid I shot at, or perceive I had killed it, but 
ripped up his waistcoat to feel whether he was not wounded; 
and, as I found presently, thought I was resolved to kill 
him: for he came and kneeled down to me, and, embracing 
my knees, said a great many things I did not understand; 
but I could easily see the meaning was to pray me not to 
kill him. 

I soon found a way to convince him that I wquld do him 
no harm; and taking him up by the hand, laughed at him, 
and pointing to the kid which I had killed, beckoned to 
him to run and fetch it, which he did; and while he was 
wondering, and looking to see how the creature was killed, 
I loaded my gun again, By and by I saw a great fowl. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


143 


like a hawk, sitting upon a tree within shot; so, to let Friday 
understand a little what I would do, I called him to me 
again, pointed at the fowl, which was indeed a parrot, 
though I thought it had been a hawk, I say, pointing to the 
parrot, and to my gun, and to the ground under the parrot, 
to let him see I would make it fall, I made him understand 
that I would shoot and kill that bird; accordingly, I fired, 
and bade him look, and immediately he saw the parrot fall. 
He stood like one frightened again, notwithstanding all I 
had said to him; and I found he was the more amazed, 
because he did not see me put anything into the gun, but 
thought that there must be some wonderful fund of death 
and destruction in that thing, able to kill man, beast, bird, 
or anything near or far off; and the astonishment this created 
in him was such as could not wear oflF for a long time; and 
I believe, if I would have let him, he would have worshiped 
me and my gun. As for the gun itself, he would not so 
much as touch it for several days after; but he would speak 
to it and talk to it, as if it had answered him, when he was 
by himself; which, as I afterwards learned of him, was to 
desire it not to kill him. Well, after his astonishment was 
a little over at this, I pointed to him to run and fetch the 
bird I had shot, which he did, but stayed some time; for 
the parrot, not being quite dead, had fluttered away a good 
distance from the place where she fell; however, he found 
her, took her up, and brought her to me; and as I had per- 
ceived his ignorance about the gun before, I took this 
advantage to charge the gun again, and t) let him see me 
do it, that I might be ready for any other mark that might 
present; but nothing more offered at that time; so I brought 
home the kid, and the same evening I took the skin off, and 
cut it out as well as I could; and having a pot fit for that 
purpose, I boiled or stewed some of the flesh, and made 
some very good broth. After I had begun to eat some, I 


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ROBINSON CRUSOE 


gave some to my man, who seemed very glad of it, and 
liked it very well; but that which was strangest to him was 
to see me eat salt with it. He made a sign to me that the 
salt was not good to eat; and putting a little into his own 
mouth, he seemed to nauseate it, and would spit and sputter 
at it, washing his mouth with fresh water after it; on the 
other hand, I took some meat into my mouth without salt, 
and I pretended to spit and sputter for want of salt, as fast 
as he had done at the salt; but it would not do; he would 
never care for salt with his meat, or in his broth; at least, 
not for a great while, and then but a very little. 

Having thus fed him with boiled meat and broth, I was 
resolved to feast him the next day with roasting a piece of 
the kid; this I did by hanging it before the fire on a string, 
as I had seen many people do in England, setting two poles 
up, one on each side of the fire, and one across on the top, 
and tying the string to the cross stick, letting the meat turn 
continually. This Friday admired very much; but when he 
came to taste the flesh, he took so many ways to tell me how 
well he liked it, that I could not but understand him; and 
at last he told me, as well as he could, he would never eat 
man’s flesh any more, which I was very glad to hear. 

The next day I set him to work to beating some corn out, 
and sifting it in the manner I used to do, as I observed 
before; and he soon understood how to do it as well as I, 
especially after he had seen what the meaning of it was, 
and that it was to make bread of; for after that, I let him 
see me make my bread, and bake it, too; and in a little 
time Friday was able to do all the work for me, as well as 
I could do it myself. 

I began now to consider that having two mouths to feed 
instead of one, I must provide more ground for my harvest, 
and plant a larger quantity of corn than I used to do; so I 
marked out a larger piece of land, and began the fence 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


145 


in the same manner as before, in which Friday worked 
not only very willingly and very hard, but did it very cheer- 
fully; and I told him what it was for; that it was for corn 
to make more bread, because he was now with me, and 
that I m:ght have enough for him and myself too. He 
appeared very sensible of that part, and let me know that 
he thought I had much more labor upon me on his account, 
than I had for myself; and that he would work the harder 
for me, if I would tell him what to do. 

This was the pleasantest year of all the life I led in this 
place. Friday began to talk pretty well, and understood 
the names of almost everything I had occasion to call for, 
and of every place I had to send him to, and talk a great 
deal to me; so that, in short, I began now to have some use 
for my tongue again, which, indeed, I had very little occasion 
for before; that is to say about speech. Besides the pleasure 
of talking to him, I had a singular satisfaction in the fellow 
himself; his simple, unfeigned honesty appeared to me more 
and more every day, and I began really to love the creature; 
and on his side I believe he loved me more than it was pos- 
sible for him ever to love anything before. 

I had a mind once to try if he had any hankering incli- 
nation to his own country again; and having taught him 
English so well that he could answer me almost any question, 
I asked him whether the nation that he belonged to never 
conquered in battle. At which he smiled, and said, ‘‘Yes, 
yes, we always fight the better’’; that is, he meant, always 
ge: the better in fight; and so we began the following dis- 
course: 

Master . — You always fight the better; how came you to be 
taken prisoner then, Friday.? 

Friday . — My nation beat much, for all that. 

Master . — How beat .? If your nation beat them, how 
came you to be taken .? 


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ROBINSON CRUSOE 


Friday. — They more many than my nation, in the place 
where me was; they take one, two, three, and me; my 
nation overheat them in the yonder place, where me no was; 
there my nation take one, two, great thousand. 

Master.— "Qux. why did not your side recover you from 
the hands of your enemies then 

Friday. — They run, one, two, three, and me, and make 
me go in the canoe; my nation have no canoe that time. 

Master. — Well, Friday, and what does your nation do 
with the men they take Do they carry them away and 
eat them, as these did 

Friday. — Yes, my nation eat mans too; eat all up. 

Master. — Where do they carry them 

Friday. — Go to other place, where they think. 

Master. — Do they come hither 

Friday. — Yes, yes, they come hither; come other else place. 

Master. — Have you been here with them 

Friday. — Yes, I been here (points to the N.W. side of the 
island, which, it seems, was their side). 

By this I understood that my man Friday had formerly 
been among the savages who used to come on shore on the 
farther part of the island, on the said man-eating occasions 
that he was now brought for; and, some time after, when I 
took the courage to carry him to that side, being the same 
I formerly mentioned, he presently knew the place, and 
told me he was there once, when they eat up twenty men, 
two women, and one child; he could not tell twenty in Eng- 
lish, but he numbered them by laying so many stones in 
a row, and pointing to me to tell them over. 

I have told this passage, because it introduces what fol- 
lows: that after this discourse I had with him, I asked him 
how far it was from our island to the shore, and whether 
the canoes were not often lost. He told me there was no 
danger, no canoes ever lost; but that after a little \vay out 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


147 


to sea, there was a current and wind, always one way in the 
morning, the other in the afternoon. This I understood 
to be no more than the sets of the tide, as going out or coming 
in; but I afterwards undertsood it was occasioned by the 
great draft and reflux of the mighty river Oroonoko, in the 
mouth of which river, as I thought afterwards, our island 
lay; and that this Island which I perceived to the W. and 
N.W. was the great island Trinidad, on the north point of 
the mouth of the river. I asked Friday a thousand ques- 
tions about the country, the inhabitants, the sea, the coast, 
and what nations were near; he told me all he knew, with 
the greatest openness imaginable. I asked him the names 
of the several nations of his sort of people, but could get no 
other name than Caribs; from whence I easily understood 
that these were the Caribbees, which our maps place on 
the part of America which reaches from the mouth of the 
river Oroonoko to Guiana, and onwards to St. Martha. 
He told me, that up a great way beyond the moon (that was, 
beyond the setting of the moon, which must be west from 
their country), there dwelt white-bearded men like me, 
and pointed to my great whiskers, which I mentioned 
before; and that they had killed much mans, that was his 
word; by all which I understood he meant the Spaniards, 
whose cruelties in America had been spread over the whole 
country and were remembered by all the nations, from 
father to son. 

I inquired if he could tell me how I might' come from this 
island, and get among those white men: he told me, ‘'Yes, 
yes, I might go in two canoes.’’ I could not understand what 
he meant by two canoes, till at last, with great difficulty, I 
found he meant it must be in a large, great boat, as big as 
two canoes. This part of Friday’s discourse began to relish 
with me very well; and from this time I entertained some 
hopes that, one time or other, I might find an opportunity 


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to make my escape from this place, and that this poor savage 
might be a means to help me to do it. 

During the long time that Friday had now been with me, 
and that he began to speak to me, and understand me, I 
was not wanting to lay a foundation of religious knowledge 
in his mind; particularly I asked him one time who made 
him. The poor creature did not understand me at all, 
but thought I had asked him who was his father; but I took 
it by another handle, and asked him who made the sea, the 
ground we walked on, and the hills and woods. He told 
me, “It was one Benamuckee, that lived beyond all;’’ he 
could describe nothing of this great person, but that he was 
very old, “much older,” he said, “than the sea or the land, 
than the moon or the stars.” I asked him then, if this old 
person had made all things, why did not all things worship 
him ^ He looked very grave, and with a perfect look of 
innocence, said, “All things said O! to him.” I asked 
him if the people who die in his country went away any- 
where. He said, “Yes; they all went to Benamuckee.” 
Then I asked him whether those they eat up went thither 
too. He said, “Yes.” 

From these things I began to instruct him in the knowl- 
edge of the true God: I told him that the great Maker of all 
things lived there, pointing up towards heaven; that he 
governed the world by the same power and providence by 
which he made it; that he was omnipotent, and could do 
everything for us, give everything to us, take everything 
from us; and thus, by degrees, I opened his eyes. 

I seriously prayed to God that he would enable me to 
instruct savingly this poor savage; assisting by his Spirit 
the heart of the poor ignorant creature to receive the light 
of the knowledge of God in Christ, reconciling him to him- 
self, and would guide me to speak so to him from the Word 
of God, that his conscience might be convinced, his eyes 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


149 


opened, and his soul saved. I had, God knows, more 
sincerity than knowledge in all the methods I took for this 
poor creature’s instruction, and must acknowledge, what I 
believe all that act upon the same principle will find, that, 
in laying things open to Him, I really informed and instructed 
myself in many things that I either did not know, or had not 
fully considered before, but which occurred naturally to 
my mind upon searching into them, for the information of 
this poor savage; and I had more affection in my inquiry 
after things upon this occasion than ever I felt before; so 
that, whether this poor wild wretch was the better for me 
or no, I had reason to be thankful that ever he came to me; 
my grief sat lighter upon me; my habitation grew com- 
fortable to me beyond measure; and when I reflected that 
in this solitary life which I had been confined to, I had not 
only been moved to look up to heaven myself, and to seek 
the hand that had brought me here, but was now to be 
made an instrument, under Providence, to save the life, 
and, for aught I know, the soul of a poor savage. 

The conversation which employed the hours between 
Friday and me were such as made the three years which we 
lived there together perfectly and completely happy, if any 
such thing as complete happiness can be found in a sub- 
lunary state. 

After Friday and I became more intimately acquainted, 
and that he could understand almost all I said to him, and 
speak fluently, though in broken English, to me, I acquainted 
him with my own story, or at least as much of it as related 
to my coming into this place; how I had lived there, and 
how long; I let him into the mystery, for such it was to him, 
of gunpowder and bullet, and taught him how to shoot. I 
gave him a knife, with which he was wonderfully delighted; 
and I made him a belt, with a frog hanging to it, such as 
in England we wear hangers in; and in the frog, instead of a 


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ROBINSON CRUSOE 


hanger, I gave him a hatchet, v^hich was not only as good 
a weapon in some cases, but much more useful upon many 
occasions. 

I described to him the countries of Europe, particularly 
England, which I came from; how we lived, how we wor- 
shiped God, how we behaved to one another, and how we 
traded in ships to all parts of the world. I gave him an 
account of the wreck which I had been on board of, and 
showed him, as near as I could, the place where she lay; 
but she was all beaten in pieces long before, and quite gone. 
I showed him the ruins of our boat, which we lost when we 
escaped, and which I could not stir with my whole strength 
then; but was now fallen almost all to pieces. Upon seeing 
this boat, Friday stood musing a great while, and said noth- 
ing. I asked him what it was he studied upon. At last, 
says he, “Me see such boat like come to place at my nation.” 
I did not understand him a good while; but, at last, when 
I had examined further into it, I understood by him, that a 
boat, such as that had been, came on shore upon the country 
where he lived; that is, as he explained it, was driven 
thither by stress of weather. I presently imagined that some 
European ship must have been cast away upon their coast, 
and the boat might get loose and drive ashore; but was so 
dull that I never once thought of men making their escape 
from a wreck thither, much less whence they might come: 
so I only inquired after the description of the boat. 

Friday described the boat to me well enough; but brought 
me better to understand him when he added with some 
warmth, “We save the white mans from drown.” Then 
I presently asked if there were any white mans, as he called 
them, in the boat. “Yes,” he said, “the boat full of white 
mans.” I asked him how many. He told me upon his 
fingers seventeen. I asked him what became of them. He 
told me, “They live, they dwell at my nation.” 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


151 


This put new thoughts into my head; for I presently 
imagined that these might be the men belonging to the ship 
that was cast away in the sight of my island, as I now called 
it; and who, after the ship was struck on the rock and they 
saw her inevitably lost, had saved themselves in their boat, 
and were landed upon that wild shore among the savages. 
Upon this I inquired of him more critically what had become 
of them. He assured me they still lived there; that they 
had been there about four years; that the savages left them 
alone, and gave them victuals to live. I asked him how it 
came to pass that they did not kill them and eat them. He 
said, “No, they make brother with them;’’ that is, as I 
understood him, a truce; and then he added, “They no 
eat mans but when make the war fight;” that is to say, they 
never eat any men but such as come to fight with them, and 
are taken in battle. 

It was after this some considerable time, that being upon 
the top of the hill, at the east side of the island, from ’whence, 
as I have said, I had, in a clear day, discovered the main 
or continent of America, Friday, the weather being very 
serene, looks very earnestly towards the mainland, and, in a 
kind of surprise, falls a-jumping and dancing, and calls out 
to me, for I was at some distance from him. I asked him 
what was the matter. “Oh, joy!” says he; “oh, glad! 
there see my country, there my nation!” I observed an 
•extraordinary sense of pleasure appeared in his face and his 
eyes sparkled, and his countenance discovered a strange 
eagerness, as if he had a mind to be in his own country 
again. This observation of mine put a great many thoughts 
into me, which made me at first not so easy about my new 
man Friday as I was before; and I made no doubt but that, 
if Friday could get back to his own nation again, he would 
not only forget all his religion, but all his obligation to me, 
and would be forward enough to give his countrymen an 


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account of me, and come back, perhaps, with a hundred or 
two of them, and make a feast upon me, at which he might 
be as merry as he used to be with those of his enemies, 
when they were taken in war. But I wronged the poor 
honest creature very much, for which I was very sorry 
afterwards. However, as my jealousy increased, and held 
me some weeks, I was a little more circumspect, and not so 
familiar and kind to him as before; in which I was certainly 
in the wrong too; the honest, grateful creature having no 
thoughts about it, but what consisted with the best principles, 
both as a religious Christian, and as a grateful, friend; as 
appeared afterwards to my full satisfaction. 

While my jealousy of him lasted, you may be sure I was 
every day pumping him, to see if he would discover any of 
the new thoughts which I suspected were in him; but I 
found everything he said was so honest and so innocent, that 
I could find nothing to nourish my suspicion; and, in spite 
of all my uneasiness, he made me at last entirely his own 
again; nor did he in the least perceive that I was uneasy, 
and therefore I could not suspect him of deceit. 

One day, walking up the same hill, but the weather being 
hazy at sea, so that we could not see the continent, I called 
to him, and said, ‘‘Friday, do not you wish yourself in your 
own country, your own nation.?’’ “Yes,” he said, “I be 
much O glad to be at my own nation.” “What would you 
do there .?” said I; “would you turn wild again, eat men’s 
flesh again, and be a savage, as you were before .?” He 
looked full of concern, and shaking his head, said, “No, 
no; Friday tell them to live good; tell them to pray God; 
tell them to eat corn-bread, cattle-flesh, milk; no eat man 
again.” “Why, then,” said I to him, “they will kill you.” 
He looked grave at that, and then said, “No, no; they no 
kill me, they willing love learn.” He meant by this, they 
would be willing to learn. He added, they learned much 


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of the bearded mans that came in the boat. Then I asked 
him if he would go back to them. He smiled at that, and 
told me he could not swim so far. I told him I would make 
a canoe for him. He told me he would go if I would go 
with him. “I go!’’ says I; ‘‘why they will eat me if I come 
there.” “No, no,” says he, “me make them no eat you; 
me make them much love you.” He meant, he would tell 
them how I had killed his enemies, and saved his life, and 
so he would make them love me. Then he told me, as well 
as he could, how kind they were to seventeen white men, or 
bearded men as he called them, who came on shore in 
distress. 

From this time, I confess, I had a mind to venture over, 
and see if I could possibly join with those bearded men, 
who, I made no doubt, were Spaniards or Portugese; not 
doubting but, if I could, we might find some method to escape 
from thence, being upon the continent, and a good com- 
pany together, better than I could from an island forty 
miles off the shore, alone, and without help. So, after some 
days, I took Friday to work again, by way of discourse, and 
told him I would give him a boat to go back to his own 
nation; and, accordingly, I carried him to my frigate,, 
which lay on the other side of the island, and having cleared 
it of water (for I always kept it sunk in the water), I brought 
it out, showed it him, and we both went into it. I found 
he was a most dexterous fellow at managing it and would 
make it go almost as swift and fast again as I could. So 
when he was in, I said to him, “Well, now, Friday, shall we 
go to your nation He looked very dull at my saying so; 
which it seems was because he thought the boat too small 
to go so far. I then told him I had a bigger; so the next 
day I went to the place where the first boat lay which I had 
made, but which I could not get into the water. He said 
that was big enough; but then, as I had taken no care of it, 


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and it had lain two or three and twenty years there, the sun 
had split and dried it, that it was rotten. Friday told me 
that such a boat would do very well, and would carry ‘‘ much 
enough vittle, drink, bread;’’ — that was his way of talking. 

Upon the whole, I was by this time so fixed upon my de- 
sign of going over with him to the continent, that I told him 
we would go and make one as big as that, and he should go 
home in it. He answered not one word, but looked very 
grave and sad. I asked him what was the matter with him. 
He asked me again, ‘‘Why you angry mad with Friday.^ 
— what me done I asked him what he meant. I told 
him I was not angry with him at all. “No angry says he, 
repeating the words several times; “why send Friday home 
away to my nation.^” “Why,” says I, “Friday, did not 
you say you wished you were there “Yes, yes,” says he, 
“wish we both there; no wish Friday there, no master there.” 
In a word, he would not think of going there without me. 
“I go there, Friday.^” says I; “what shall I do there.?” 
He turned very quick upon me at this. “You do great deal 
much good,” says he; “you teach wild mans be good, 
sober, tame mans; you tell them know God, pray God, 
and live new life.” “Alas, Friday!” says I, “thou knowest 
not what thou sayest; I am but an ingorant man myself.” 
“Yes, yes,” says he, “you teachee me good, you teachee 
them good.” “No, no, Friday,” says I, “you shall go with- 
out me; leave me here to live by myself, as I did before.” 
He looked confused again at that word; and running to 
one of his hatchets which he used to wear, he takes it up 
hastily, and gives it to me. “What must I do with this.?” 
says I to him. “You take kill Friday,” says he. “What 
must I kill you for.?” said I again. He returns very quick: 
“What you send Friday away for.? Take kill Friday, no 
send Friday away.” This he spoke so earnestly that I 
saw tears stand in his eyes. In a word, I so plainly dis- 


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covered the utmost affection in him to me, and a firm reso- 
lution in him, that I told him then, and often after, that I 
would never send him away from me, if he was willing to 
stay with me. 

Upon the whole, as I found by all his discourse a settled 
affection to me, and that nothing could part him from me, 
so I found all the foundation of his desire to go to his own 
country was laid in his ardent affection to the people, and 
his hopes of my doing them good; a thing which, as I had 
no notion of myself, so I had not the least thought, or inten- 
tion, or desire of undertaking it. But still I found a strong 
inclination to my attempting an escape, founded on the 
supposition gathered from the former discourse, that there 
were seventeen bearded men there; and, therefore, without 
any more delay, I went to work with Friday to find out a 
great tree proper to fell, and make a large periagua or canoe, 
to undertake the voyage. There were trees enough in the 
island to have built a little fleet, not of periaguas or canoes, 
but even of good large vessels; but the main thing I looked 
at was, to get one so near the water that we might launch 
it when it was made, to avoid the mistake I committed at first. 

At last, Friday pitched upon a tree; for I found he knew 
much better than I what kind of wood was fittest for it; 
nor can I tell, to this day, what wood to call the tree we cut 
down, except that it was very like the tree we call fustic, 
or between that and the Nicaragua wood, for it was much 
of the same color and smell. Friday was for burning the 
hollow or cavity of this tree out, to make it into a boat, but 
I showed him how rather to cut it with tools; which, after I 
had showed him how to use, he did very haadily; and in 
about a month’s hard labor, we finished it and made it very 
handsome; especially, when, with our axes, which I showed 
him how to handle, we cut and hewed the outside into the 
true shape of a boat. After this, however, it cost us near a 


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fortnight's time to get her along, as it were, inch by inch, 
upon great rollers into the water; but when she was in, she 
would have carried twenty men with great ease. 

When she was in the water, though she was so big, it 
amazed me to see with what dexterity and how swift my 
man Friday could manage her, turn her, and paddle her 
along. So I asked him if we would, and if we might venture 
over in her. “Yes,’’ he said; “we venture over in her very 
well, though great blow wipd.” However, I had a farther 
design that he knew nothing of, and that was to make a mast 
and a sail, and to fit her with an anchor and cable. As to ’ 
a mast, that was easy enough to get; so I pitched upon a 
straight young cedar tree, which I found near the place, and 
which there was great plenty of in the island, and I set 
Friday to work to cut it down, and gave him directions how 
to shape and order it. But as to the sail, that was my par- 
ticular care. I knew I had old sails, or rather pieces of old 
sails, enough; but as I had had them now six-and-twenty 
years by me, and had not been very careful to preserve them, 
not imagining that I should ever have this kind of use for 
them, I did not doubt but they were all rotten; and, indeed, 
most of them were so. However, I found two pieces, which 
appeared pretty good, and with these I went to work; and 
with a great deal of pains, and awkward, tedious stitching, 
you may be sure, for want of needles, I at length made a 
three-cornered ugly thing, like what we call in England a 
shoulder-of-mutton sail, to go with a boom at bottom, and 
a little short sprit at the top, such as usually our ships’ 
long boats sail with, and such as I best knew how to manage, 
because it was such a one as I used in the boat in which I 
made my escape from Barbary, as related in the first part 
of my story. 

I was near two months performing this last work — viz., 
rigging and fitting my mast and sails; for I finished them 


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very complete, making a small stay, and a sail or foresail 
to it, to assist if we should turn to windward; and, which 
was more than all, I fixed a rudder to the stern of her to steer 
with. And though I was but a bungling shipwright, yet 
as I knew the usefulness, and even the necessity of such a 
thing, I applied myself with so much pains to do it, that at last 
I brought it to pass; though, considering the many dull 
contrivances I had for it that failed, I think it cost me almost 
as much labor as making the boat. 

After all this was done, I had my man Friday to teach as 
to what belonged to the navigation of my boat; for, though 
be knew very well how to paddle the canoe, he knew nothing 
of what belonged to a sail and a rudder; and was the most 
amazed when he saw me work the boat to and again in the 
sea by the rudder, and how the sail gibbed, and filled this 
way or that way, as the course we sailed changed; I say, 
when he saw this, he stood like one astonished and amazed. 
However, with a little use, I made all these things familiar 
to him, and he became an expert sailor, except that as to 
the compass I could make him understand very little of that. 
On the other hand, as there was very little cloudy weather, 
and seldom or . never any fogs in those parts, there was the 
less occasion for the compass, seeing the stars were always 
to be seen by night, and the shore by day, except in the rainy 
seasons, and then nobody cared to stir abroad either by land 
or sea. 

I was now entered on the seven-and-twentieth year of 
my captivity in this place; though the last three years that 
I had this creature with me ought rather to be left out of 
the account, my habitation being quite of another kind 
than in all the rest of my time. I kept the anniversary of 
my landing here with the same thankfulness to God for His 
mercies as at first; and if I had such cause of acknowledg- 
ment at first, I had much more so now, having such additional 


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testimonies of the care of Providence over me, and the great 
hopes I had of being effectually and speedily delivered; 
for I had an invincible impression upon my thoughts that 
my deliverance was at hand, and that I should not be 
another year in this place. However, I went on with my 
hubandry; digging, planting, and fencing, as usual. I 
gathered and cured my grapes, and did every necessary 
thing as before. 

The rainy season was in the meantime upon me, when I 
kept more within doors than at other times. I had, stowed 
our new vessel as secure as we could, bringing her up into 
the creek, where, as I said in the beginning, I landed my 
rafts from the ship; and hauling her up to the shore at high- 
water mark, I made my man Friday dig a little dock, just 
big enough to hold her, and just deep enough to give her 
water enough to float in; and then, when the tide was out, 
we made a strong dam across the end of it, to keep the water 
out; and so she lay dry as to the tide from the sea; and to 
keep the rain off, we laid a great many boughs of trees, so 
thick that she was as well thatched as a house; and thus we 
waited for the months of November and December, in which 
I designed to make my adventure. 

When the settled season began to come in, as the thought 
of my design returned with the fair weather, I was preparing 
daily for the voyage. And the first thing I did was to lay 
by a certain quantity of provisions, being the stores for our 
voyage; and intended, in a week or a fortnight’s time, to 
open the dock, and launch out our boat. I was busy one 
morning upon something of this kind, when I called to 
Friday, and bid him go to the seashore, and see if he could 
find a turtle or tortoise, a thing which we generally got once 
a week, for the sake of the eggs, as well as the flesh. Friday 
had not been gone long when he came running back, and 
flew over my outer wall, or fence, like one that felt 


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not the ground, or the steps he set his feet on; and before 
I had time to speak to him, he cries out to me, ‘‘O master! 

0 master! O sorrow! O bad!’’ “What’s the matter, 
Friday?” said I. “Oh! yonder, there,” says he; “one, 
two, three canoes; one, two, three!” By this way of speak- 
ing, I concluded there were six; but on inquiry, I found there 
were but three. “Well, Friday,” says I, “do not be fright- 
ened.” So I heartened him up as well as I could. How- 
ever, I saw the poor fellow was most terribly scared, for 
nothing ran in his head but that they were come back to 
look for him, and would cut him in pieces and eat him; 
and the poor fellow trembled so that I scarcely knew what 
to do with him. I comforted him as well as I could, and 
told him I was in as much danger as he, and that they would 
eat me as well as him. “But,” said I, -“Friday, we must 
resolve to fight them. Can you fight, Friday?” “Me 
shoot,” says he; “but there come many great number.” 
“No matter for that,” said I, again; “our guns will fright 
them that we do not kill. So I asked him whether, if I 
resolved to defend him, he would defend me, and stand by 
me, and do just as I bid him. He said, “Me die, when you 
bid die, master.” I made him take the two fowling-pieces, 
which we always carried, and load them with large swanshot, 
as big as small pistol-bullets. Then I took four muskets, 
and loaded them with two slugs and five small bullets each; 
and my two pistols I loaded with a brace of bullets each. 

1 hung my great sword, as usual, naked by my side, and gave 
Friday his hatchet. When I had thus prepared myself, I 
took my perspective-glass, and went up to the side of the 
hill, to see what I could discover; and I found quickly by 
my glass that there were one-and-twenty savages, three 
prisoners, and three canoes; and that their whole business 
seemed to be the triumphant banquet upon these three 
human bodies; a barbarous feast indeed, but nothing more 


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than, as I observed, was usual with them. I observed 
also that they landed, not where they had done when Friday 
made his escape, but nearer to my creek, where the shore 
was low, and where a thick wood came almost down to the 
sea. 

I gave Friday one pistol to stick in his girdle, and three 
guns upon his shoulder, and I took one pistol and the other 
three myself; and in this posture we marched out. I gave 
Friday a large bag with more powder and bullets; and as 
to orders, I charged him to keep close behind me, and not 
to stir, or shoot, or do anything till I bid him, and in the 
meantime, not to speak a word. In this posture I fetched a 
compass to my right hand of near a mile, as well to get 
over the creek as to get into the wood, so that I might come 
within shot of them before I should be discovered, which I 
had seen by my glass it was easy to do. 

I entered the wood, and with all possible wariness and 
silence, Friday following close at my heels, I marched till 
I came to the skirt of the wood on the side which was next 
to them, only that one corner of the wood lay between me 
and them. Here I called softly to Friday, and showing him 
a great tree, which was just at the corner of the wood, I 
bade him go to the tree, and bring me word if he could see 
there plainly what they were doing. He did so, and came 
immediately back to me, and told me they might be plainly 
viewed there — that they were all about their fire eating the 
flesh of one of their prisoners, and that another lay bound 
upon the sand a little from them, whom he said they would 
kill next; and this fired the very soul within me. He told 
me it was not one of their nation, but one of the bearded 
men whom he had told me of, that came to their country in a 
boat. I was filled with horror at the very naming of the 
white, bearded man; and going to the tree, I saw plainly 
by my glass a white man, who lay upon the beach of the 


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sea with his hands and feet tied with flags, or things like 
rushes, and that Re was a European and had clothes on. 

There was another tree, and a little thicket beyond it, 
about fifty yards nearer to them than the place where I was, 
which, by going a little way about, I saw I might come at 
undiscovered, and that then I should be within half a shot 
of them; so I withheld my passion, though I was indeed 
enraged to the highest degree; and going back about twenty 
paces, I got behind some bushes, which held all the way till 
I came to the other tree, and then came to a little rising 



ground, which gave me a full view of them at the distance of 
about eighty yards. 

I had now not a moment to lose, for nineteen of the dread- 
ful wretches sat upon the ground, all close huddled together, 
and had just sent the other two to butcher the poor Christian, 
and bring him perhaps limb by limb to their fire, and they 
were stooping down to untie the bands at his feet. I turned 
to Friday. “Now, Friday,’’ said I, “do as I bid thee.” 
Friday said he would. “Then, Friday,” said I, “do exactly 


162 


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as you see me do; fail in nothing/’ So I set down one of 
the muskets and the fowling-piece upon the ground, and 
Friday did the like by his, and with the other musket I took 
my aim at the savages, bidding him do the like; then asking 
him if he was ready, he said, ‘/Yes.” “Then fire at them,” 
said I; and at the same moment I fired also. 

Friday took his aim so much better than I, that on the 
side that he shot he killed two of them, and wounded three 
more; and on my side I killed one, and wounded two. 
They were, you may be sure, in a dreadful consternation; 
and all of them that "were not hurt jumped upon their feet, 
but did not immediately know which way to run, or which 
way to look, for they knew not from whence their destruction 
came. Friday kept his eyes close upon me, that, as I bid 
him, he might observe what I did; so, as soon as the first 
shot was made, I threw down the piece, and took up the 
fowling-piece, and Friday did the like; he saw me cock and 
present; he did the same again.- “Are you ready, Friday 
said I. “Yes,” says he. “Let fly, then,” said I, “in the 
name of God!.” and with that I fired again among the 
amazed wretches, and so did Friday; and as our pieces were 
now loaded with what I call swanshot, or small- pistol- 
bullets, we found only two drop; but so many were wounded, 
that they ran about yelling and screaming like mad creatures, 
all bloody, and most of them miserably wounded; whereof 
three more fell quickly after, though not quite dead. 

“Now, Friday,” said I, laying down the discharged pieces, 
and taking up the musket which was yet loaded, “follow 
me,” which he did with a great deal of courage; upon which 
I rushed out of the wood and showed myself, and Friday 
close at my foot. As soon as I perceived they saw me, I 
shouted as loud as I could, and bade Friday do so too, and 
running as fast as I could, which by the way was not very 
fast, being loaded with arms as I was, I made directly 


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toward the poor victim, who was, as I said, lying upon the 
beach or shore, between the place where they sat and the 
sea. The two butchers who were just going to work with 
him had left him at the surprise of our first fire, and fled in 
a terrible fright to the seaside, and had jumped into a canoe, 
and three more of the rest made the same way. I turned to 
Friday, and bade him step forward and fire at them; he 
understood me immediately and running about forty yards 
to be nearer them, he shot at them; and I thought he killed 
them all, for I saw them all fall of a heap into the boat, though 
I saw two of them up again quickly; however, he killed two 
of them, and wounded the third so that he lay down in the 
bottom of the boat as if he had been dead. 

While my man Friday fired at them, I pulled out my 
knife and cut the flags that bound the poor victim; and 
loosing his hands and feet, I lifted him up, and asked him, 
in the Portuguese tongue, what he was. He answered in 
Latin, Christianus; but was so weak and faint that he could 
scarce stand or speak. I asked him what countryman he 
was, and he said Espagnole; and being a little recovered, 
let me know, by all the signs he could possibly make, how 
much he was in my debt for his deliverance. ‘‘Seignior,’’ 
said I, with as much Spanish as I could make up, “we will 
talk afterwards, but we must fight now; if you have any 
strength left, take this pistol and sword, and lay about you.” 
He took them very thankfully; and no sooner had he the 
arms in his hands, but, as if they had put new vigor into him, 
he flew upon his murderers like a fury, and had cut two of 
them in pieces in an instant; for the truth is, as the whole 
was a surprise to them, so the poor creatures were so much 
frightened with the noise of our pieces that they fell down 
for mere amazement and fear, and had no more power to 
attempt their own escape, than their flesh had to resist our 
shot; and that was the case of those five that Friday shot at 


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in the boat; for as three of them fell with the hurt they 
received, so the other two fell with the fright. 

I kept my piece in my hand still without firing, being 
willing to keep my charge ready, because I had given the 
Spaniard my pistol and sword; so I called to Friday, and 
bade him run up to the tree from whence we first fired, and 
fetch the arms which lay there that had been discharged, 
which he did with great swiftness; and then giving him my 
musket, I sat down myself to load al the rest again, and 
bade them come to me when they wanted. While I was 
loading these pieces, there happened a fierce engagement 
between the Spaniard and one of the savages, who made at 
him with one of their great wooden swords, the same weapon 
that was to have killed him before, if I had not prevented 
it. The Spaniard, who was as bold and brave as could be 
imagined, though weak, had 'fought this Indian a good 
while, and had cut two great wounds on his head; but the 
savage being a stout lusty fellow, closing n with him, had 
thrown him down, being faint, and was wringing my sword 
out of his hand; when the Spaniard, though undermost, 
wisely quitted the sword, drew the pistol from his girdle, 
shot the savage through the body, and killed him upon the 
spot, before I, who was running to help him, could come 
near him. 

Friday, being now left to his liberty, pursued the flying 
wretches, with no weapon in his* hand but his hatchet; and 
with that he dispatched those three who, as I said before, 
were wounded at first, and fallen, and all the rest he could 
come up with; and the Spaniard coming to me for a gun, I 
gave him one of the fowling-pieces, with which he pursued 
two of the savages, and wounded them both; but, as he 
was not able to run, they both got from him into the wood, 
where Friday pursued them, and killed one of them, but 
the other was too nimble for him; and though he was 


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wounded, yet had plunged himself into the sea, and swam 
with all his might off to those two who were left in the 
canoe; which three in the canoe, with one wounded, that 
we knew not whether he died or no, were all that escaped 
our hands, of one-and-twenty. The account of the whole 
is as follows: Three killed at our first shot from the tree; 
two killed at the next shot; two killed by Friday, in the 
boat; two killed by Friday, of those at first wounded; one 
killed by Friday in the wood; three killed by the Spaniard; 
four killed, being found dropped here and there, of the 
wounds, or killed by Friday in his chase of them; four 
escaped in the boat, whereof one wounded if not dead — 
twenty-one in all. 

Those that were in the canoe worked hard to get out of 
gun-shot, and though Friday made two or three shots at 
them, I did not find that he hit any of them. Fridaywould 
fain have had me take one of their canoes, and pursue them; 
and, indeed, I was very anxious about their escape, lest, 
carrying the news home to their people, they should come 
back perhaps with two or three hundred of the canoes, 
and devour us by mere multitude; so I consented to pursue 
them by sea, and running to one of their canoes, I jumped 
in, and bade Friday follow me; but when I was in the 
canoe, I was surprised to find another poor creature lie 
there, bound hand and foot, as the Spaniard was, for the 
slaughter, and almost dead with fear, not knowing what 
was the matter; for he had not been able to look up over 
the side of the boat, he was tied so hard, neck and heels, 
and had been tied so long, that he had really little life in him. 

I immediately cut the twisted flags or rushes, which they 
had bound, him with, and would have helped him up, but 
he could not stand or speak, but groaned most piteously, 
believing, it seems, still, that he was only unbound in order 
to be killed. When Friday came to hear him speak, and* 


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look in his face, it would have moved any one to tears to 
have seen how Friday kissed him, embraced him, hugged 
him, cried, laughed, hallooed, jumped about, danced, 
sung, then cried again, wrung his hands, beat his own face 
and head; and then sung and jumped about again like a 
distracted creature. It was a good while before I could 
make him speak to me, or tell me what was the matter; 
but when he came a little to himself, he told me that it was 
his father. 

It is not easy for me to express how it moved me to see 
what ecstacy and filial affection had worked in this poor 
savage at the sight of his father, and of his being delivered 
from death; nor, indeed, can I describe half the extrava- 
gances of his affection after this; for he went into the boat, 
and out of the boat, a great many times; when he went 
in to him, he would sit down by him, open his breast, and 
hold his father’s head close to his bosom half an hour together, 
to nourish it; then he took his arms and ankles, which were 
numbed and stiff with the binding, and chafed and rubbed 
them with his hands; and I, perceiving what the case was, 
gave him some rum out of my bottle to rub them with, 
which did them a great deal of good. 

This action put an end to our pursuit of the canoe with 
the other savages, who were now gotten almost out of sight; 
and it was happy for us that we did not, for it blew so hard 
within two hours after, and before they could be got a quarter 
of their way, and continued blowing so hard all night, and 
that from the northwest, which was against them, that I 
could not suppose their boat could live, or that they ever 
reached their own coast. 

But to return to Friday; he was so busy about his father, 
that I could not find in my heart to take him off for some 
time; but after I thought he could leave him a little I called 
him to me, and he came jumping and laughing, and pleased 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


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to the highest extreme; then I asked him if he had given 
his father any bread. He shook his head, and said, ‘‘None; 
ugly dog eat all up self.’’ I then gave him a cake of bread, 
out of a little pouch I carried on purpose; but he would 
not taste it, but carried it to his father. I had in my pocket 
also two or three bunches of raisins, so I gave him a handful 
of them for his father. He had no sooner given his father 
these raisins, but I saw him come out of the boat, and run 
away as if he had been bewitched, for he was the swiftest 
fellow on his feet that ever I saw; I say, he ran at such a 
rate that he was out of sight, as it were, in an instant; and 
though I called, and halloed out, too, after him, it was 
all one — away he went; and in a quarter of an hour 1 saw 
him come back again, though not so fast as he went; and, 
as he came nearer, I found his pace slacker, because he had 
something in his hand. When he came up to me, I found 
he had been quite home for an earthen jug or pot, to bring 
his father some fresh water, and that he had got two more 
cakes or loaves of bread; the bread he gave to me, but the 
water he carried to his father; however, as I was very 
thirsty too, I took a little sup of it. This water revived his 
father, who was just fainting with thirst. 

When his father had drunk, I called to him to know if 
there was any water left; he said “Yes”; and I bade him 
give to the poor Spaniard, who was in as much want of it 
as his father; and I sent one of the cakes, that Friday 
brought, to the Spaniard too, who was indeed very weak, 
and was reposing himself upon a green place under the shade 
of a tree; and whose limbs were also very stiff, and very 
much swelled with the rude bandage he had been tied with. 
When I saw that upon Friday’s coming to him with the water 
he sat up and drank, and took the bread and began to eat, 
I went to him and gave him a handful of raisins; he looked 
up in my face with all the tokens of gratitude and thank- 


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fulness that could appear in any countenance; but was so 
weak, notwithstanding he had so exerted himself in the 
fight, that he could not stand up upon his feet; he tried to 
do it two or three times, but was really not able, his ankles 
were so swelled and so painful to him; so I bade him sit 
still, and caused Friday to rub his ankles, and bathe them 
with rum, as he had done his father’s. 

I observed the poor affectionate creature every two min- 
utes, or perhaps less, all the while he was here, turned his 
head about, to see if his father was in the same place and 
posture as he left him sitting; and at last he found he was 
not to be seen; at which he started up, and, without speaking 
a word, flew with that swiftness to him that one could scarce 
perceive his feet to touch the ground as he went; but when 
he came, he only found he had laid himself down to ease 
his limbs, so Friday came back to me presently; and I then 
spoke to the Spaniard to let Friday help him up, if he could, 
and lead him to the boat, and then he should carry him to 
our dwelling, where I would take care of him. But Friday, 
a lusty young fellow, took the Spaniard quite up upon his 
back, and carried him away to the boat, and set him down 
softly upon the side or gunnel of the canoe, with his feet in 
the inside of it; and then lifted him quite in, and set him 
close to his father; and presently stepping out again, launched 
the boat off, and paddled it along the shore faster than I 
could walk, though the wind blew pretty hard too; so he 
brought them both safe into our creek, and, leaving them in 
the boat, runs away to fetch the other canoe. As he passed 
me I spoke to him, and asked him whither he went. He 
told me, “Go fetch more boat”; so away he went like the 
wind, for sure never man or horse ran like him; and he had 
the other canoe in the creek almost as soon as I got to it by 
land; so he wafted me over, and then went to help our 
new guests out of the boat, which he did; but they were 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


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neither of them able to walk; so that poor Friday knew not 
what to do. 

To remedy this, I went to work in my thought, and calling 
to Friday to bid them sit down on the bank while he came 
to me, I soon made a kind of hand-barrow to lay them on, 
and Friday and I carried them up both together upon it 
between us. 

But when we got them to the outside of our wall, or 
fortification, we were at a worse loss than before, for it was 
impossible to get them over, and I 'was resolved not to 
break it down; so I set to work again, and Friday and I, 
in about two hours’ time, made a very handsome tent, 
covered with old sails, and above that with boughs of trees, 
being in the space without our outward fence, and between 
that and the grove of young wood which I had planted; 
and here we made them two beds of such things as I had, 
viz., of good rice straw, with blankets laid upon it, to lie 
on, and another lo cover them, on each bed. 

My island was now peopled, and I thought myself very 
rich in subjects; and it was a merry reflection, which I 
frequently made, how like a king I looked. First of all, 
the whole country was my own mere property, so that I 
had an undoubted right of dominion. Secondly, my people 
were perfectly subjected; I was absolutely lord and law- 
giver; they all owed their lives to me, and were- ready to 
lay down their lives, if there had been occasion for it, for 
me. It was remarkable, too, I had but three subjects, 
and they were of three different religions; my man Friday 
was a Protestant, his father was a Pagan and a cannibal, 
and the Spaniard was a Papist. However, I allowed liberty 
of conscience throughout my dominion. But this is by the way. 

As soon as I had secured my two weak, rescued prisoners, 
and given them shelter, and a place to rest them upon, I 
began to think of making some provisions for them; and 


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the first thing I did, I ordered Friday to take a yearling 
goat, betwixt a kid and a goat, out of my particular flock, 
to be killed; when I cut off the hinder quarter, and chopping 
it into small pieces, I set Friday to work to boiling and 
stewing, and made them a very good dish, I assure you, of 
flesh and broth, having put some barley and rice also into 
the broth; and as I cooked it without doors, for I made no 
fire within my inner wall, so I carried it all into the new 
tent, and having set a table there for them, I sat down, and 
ate my own dinner also with them, and, as well as I could, 
cheered them and encouraged them. Friday was my 
interpreter, especially to his father, and, indeed, to the 
Spaniard too, for the Spaniard spoke the language of the 
savages pretty well. 

After we had dined, or rather supped, I ordered Friday 
to take one of the canoes and go and fetch our muskets and 
other firearms, which, for want of time, we had left upon the 
place of battle; and, the next day, I ordered him to go and 
bury the dead bodies of the savages, which lay open to the 
sun, and would presently be offensive. I also ordered him 
to bury the horrid remains of their barbarous feast, which 
I could not think of doing myself ; nay, I could not bear to see 
them, if I went that way; all which punctually he performed, 
and defaced the very appearance of the savages being 
there; so that when I went again, I could scarce know where 
it was, otherwise than by the corner of the wood pointing 
to the place. 

I then began to enter into a little conversation with my 
two new subjects; and, first, I set Friday to inquire of his 
father what he thought of the escape of the savages in that 
canoe, and whether we might expect a return of them, 
with a power too great for us to resist. His first opinion 
was, that the savages in the boat never could live out the 
storm which blew that night they went off, but must, of 


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necessity, be drowned, or driven south to those other shores, 
where they were as sure to be devoured as they were to be 
drowned if they were cast away; but, as to what they would 
do if they came safe on shore, he said he knew not; but it 
was his opinion that they were so dreadfully frightened with 
the manner of their being, attacked, the noise, and the fire, 
that he believed they would tell the people they were all 
killed by thunder and lightning, not by the hand of man; 
and that the two which appeared, viz., Friday and I, were 
two heavenly spirits, or furies, come down to destroy them, 
and not men with weapons. This he said he knew because 
he heard them all cry out so, in their language, one to another; 
for it was impossible for them to conceive that a man could 
dart fire, and speak thunder, and kill at a distance without 
lifting up the hand, as was done now; and this old savage 
was in the right; for, as I understood since, by other hands, 
the savages never attempted to go to the island afterwards; 
they were so terrified with the accounts given by those four 
men (for it seems they did escape the sea), that they believed 
whoever went to that enchanted island would be destroyed 
with fire from the gods. This, however, I knew not, and 
therefore was under continual apprehension for a good 
while, and kept always upon my guard, I and all my army; 
for, as we were now four of us, I would have ventured upon 
a hundred of them, fairly in the open field, at any time. 

In a little time, however, no more canoes appearing, 
the fear of their coming wore off; and I began to take my 
former thoughts of a voyage to the main into consideration; 
being likewise assured by Friday’s father that I might 
depend upon good usage from their nation, on his account, 
if I would go. But my thoughts were a little suspended 
when I had a serious discourse with the Spaniard, and 
when I understood that there were sixteen more of his coun- 
trymen and Portuguese, who, having been cast away and 


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made their escape to that side, lived there at peace, indeed, 
with the savages, but were very sore put to it for necessaries, 
and, indeed, for life. I asked him all the particulars of 
their voyage, and found they were a Spanish ship, bound 
from the Rio de la Plata to the Havanna, being directed 
to leave their loading there, which was chiefly hides and 
silver, and to bring back what European goods they could 
meet with there; that they had five Portuguese seamen on 
board, whom they took out of another wreck; that five of 
their own men were drowned, when first the ship was lost, 
and that these escaped through infinite danger and hazards, 
and arrived, almost starved, on the cannibal coast, where 
they expected to have been devoured every moment. He 
told me they had some arms with them, but they were 
perfectly useless, for that they had neither powder nor ball, 
the washing of the sea having spoiled all their powder but 
a little, which they used, at their first landing, to provide 
themselves some food. 

I asked him what he thought would become of them 
there, and if they had formed no design of making any 
escape. He said they had many consultations about it; 
but that having neither vessel, nor tools to build one, nor 
provisions of any kind, their councils always ended in tears 
and despair. He told me they were all of them very civil, 
honest men, and they were under the greatest distress imag- 
inable, having neither weapons nor clothes, nor any food, 
but at the mercy and discretion of the savages; out of all 
hopes of ever returning to their own country; and that he 
was sure, if I would undertake their relief, they would live 
and die by me. 

Upon these assurances, I resolved to venture to relieve 
them, if possible, and to send the old savage and this Span- 
iard over to them to treat. But when we had got all things 
in readiness to go, the Spaniard himself started an objection, 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


173 


which had so much prudence in it on one hana, and so 
much sincerity on the other hand, that I could not but be 
very well .satisfied in it; and, by his advice, put off the 
deliverance of his comrades for at least half a year. The 
case was thus: he had been with us now about a month, 
during which time I had let him see in what manner I had 
provided, with the assistance of Providence, for my support; 
and he saw evidently what stock of corn and rice I had laid 
up; which, though it was more than sufficient for myself, 
yet it was not sufficient, without good husbandry, for my 
family, now it was increased to four; but much less would 
it be sufficient, if his countrymen, who were, as he said, 
fourteen, still alive, should come over; and, least of all, 
would it be sufficient to victual our vessel, if we should build 
one, for a voyage to any of the Christian colonies of America; 
so he told me he though it would be more advisable to let 
him and the other two dig and cultivate some more land, 
as much as I could spare seed to sow, and that we should 
wait another harvest, that we might have a supply of corn 
for his countrymen, when they should come; for want 
might be a temptation to them to disagree, or not to think 
themselves as delivered, otherwise than out of one difficulty 
into another. ‘‘You know,’’ says he, “the children of 
Israel, though they rejoiced at first for their being delivered 
out of Egypt, yet rebelled even against God himself, that 
delivered them, when they came to want bread in the wilder- 
ness.” 

His caution was so seasonable, and his advice so good, 
that I could not but be very well pleased with his proposal, 
as well as I was satisfied with his fidelity; so we fell to dig- 
ging, all four of us, as well as the wooden tools we were 
furnished with permitted; and, -in about a month’s time, 
by the end of which it was seed-time, we had got as much 
land cured and trimmed up, as we sowed two-and-twenty 


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bushels of barley on, and sixteen jars of rice, which was, in 
short, all the seed we had to spare; indeed, we left ourselves 
barely sufficient for our own food for the six months that 
we had to expect our crop; that is to say, reckoning from 
the time we set our seed aside for sowing; for it is not to be 
supposed it is six months in the ground in that country. 

Having now society enough, and our numbers being 
sufficient to put us out of fear of the savages, if they had 
come, unless their number had been very great, we went 
freely all over the island, whenever we found occasion; 
and, as we had our escape or deliverance upon our thoughts, 
it was impossible, at least for me, to have the means of it 
out of mine. For this purpose, I marked out several trees 
which I thought fit for our work, and I set Friday and his 
father to cut them down; and then I caused the Spaniard, 
to whom I imparted my thoughts on that affair, to oversee 
and direct their work. I showed them with what inde- 
fatigable pains I had hewed a large tree into single planks, 
and I caused them to do the like, till they had made about 
a dozen large planks of good oak, near two feet broad, 
thirty-five feet long, and from’ two inches to four inches 
thick; what prodigious labor it took up, any one may 
imagine. 

At the same time, I contrived to increase my little stock 
of tame goats as much as I could; and for this purpose I 
made Friday and the Spaniard go out one day, and myself 
with Friday the next day (for we took our turns), and by 
this means we got about twenty young kids to breed up 
with the rest; for whenever we shot the dam, we saved the 
kids and added them to our flock. But, above all, the 
season for curing the grapes coming on, I caused such a 
prodigious quantity to be hung up in the sun, that, I believe, 
had we been at Alicant, where the raisins of the sun are 
cured, we could have filled sixty or eighty barrels; and 


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these, with our bread, formed a great part of- our food — 
very good living too, I assure you, for they are exceeding 
nourishing. 

It was now harvest, and our crop in good order; it was 
not the most plentiful increase I had seen in the island, but, 
however, it was enough to answer our ends; for, from twenty- 
two bushels of barley, we brought in and thrashed out 
above two hundred and twenty bushels; and the like in 
proportion of the rice; which was store enough for our food 
to the next harvest, though all the sixteen Spaniards had 
been on shore with me; or, if we had been ready for a voyage, 
it would very plentifully have victualed our ship to have 
carried us to any part of the world, that is to say, of America. 
When we had thus housed and secured our magazine of 
corn, we fell to work to make more wickerwork, viz., great 
baskets, in which we kept it; and the Spaniard was very 
handy an4 dexterous at this part, and often blamed me 
that I did not make some things for defense of this kind of 
work; but I saw no need of it. 

And now, having a full supply of food for all the guests 
expected, I gave the Spaniard leave to go over the main, 
to see what he could do with those he had left behind him 
there. I gave him a strict charge not to bring any man 
with him who would not first swear, in the presence of 
himself and the old savage, that he would no way injure, 
fight with, or attack the person he should find in the island, 
who was so kind as to send for them in order to their deliv- 
erance; but that they would stand by him and defend him 
against all such attempts, and wherever they went, would 
be entirely under and subjected to his command; and that 
this should be put in writing, and signed with their hands. 
How they were to have done this, when I knew they had 
neither pen nor ink — that, indeed, was a question which we 
never asked. Under these instructions, the Spaniard and 


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the old savage, the father of Friday, went away in one of 
the canoes which they might be said to have come in, or 
rather were brought in, when they came as prisoners to be 
devoured by the savages. I gave each of them a musket, 
with a firelock on it, and about eight charges of powder and 
ball, charging them to be very good husbands of both, and 
not to use eifher of them but upon urgent occasion. 

This was a cheerful work, being the first measures used 
by me, in view of my deliverance, for now twenty-seven 
years and some days. I gave them provisions of bread, 
and of drted grapes, sufficient for themselves for many 
days, and sufficient for all the Spaniards for about eight 
days^ time; and wishing them a good voyage, -I saw them 
go, agreeing with them about a signal they should hang 
out at their return, by which I should know them again, 
when they came back, at a distance, before they came on 
shore. They went away, with a fair gale, on the day the 
moon was at full, by my account, in the month of October; 
but as for an exact reckoning of days, after I had once lost 
it, I could never recover it again; nor had I kept even the 
number of years so punctually as to be sure I \vas right, 
though, as it proved, when I afterwards, examined my 
account, I found I had kept a true reckoning of years. 

It was no less than eight days I had waited for them, 
when a strange and unforseen accident intervened, of which 
the like has not, perhaps, been heard of in history. I was 
fast asleep in my hutch one morning, when my man Friday 
came running in to me, and called aloud, ‘‘Master, master, 
they are come, they are come!’’ I jumped up, and, regard- 
less of danger, I went out as soon as I could get my clothes 
on, through my little grove, which, by the way, was by 
this time grown to be a very thick wood; I say, regardless of 
danger, I went without my arms, which was not my custom 
to do; but I was surprised, when, turning my eyes to the 


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177 


sea, I presently saw a boat at about a league and a half 
distance, standing in for the shore, with a shoulder-of-mut- 
ton sail, as they call it, and the wind blowing pretty fair to 
bring them in; also I observed, presently, that they did not 
come from that side which the shore lay on, but from the 
southernmost end of the island. Upon this I called Friday 
in, and bade him lie close, for these were not the people we 
looked for, and that we .might not know yet whether they 
were friends or enemies. In the next place, I went in to 
fetch my perspective glass, to see what I could make of 
them; and, having taken the ladder out, I climbed up to 
the top of the hill, as I used to do when I was apprehensive 
of anything, and to take my view plainer, without being 
discovered. I had scarce set my foot upon the hill, when 
my eye plainly discovered a ship lying at an anchor, at 
about two leagues and a half distance from me, S.S.E., 
but not above a league and a half from the shore. By my 
observation, it appeared plainly to be an English ship, 
and the boat appeared to be an English longboat. 

Presently I saw the boat draw near the shore, as if they 
looked for a creek to thrust it in at, for convenience of 
landing. They did not come quite far enough, and so did 
not see the little inlet where I formerly landed my rafts, 
but ran their boat ‘on shore upon the beach, at about half a 
mile from me. This was very happy for me. Otherwise 
they would have landed just at my door, as I may say, and 
would soon have beaten me out of my castle, and perhaps 
have plundered me of all I had. When they were on shore, 
I was. fully satisfied they were Englishmen. There were in 
all eleven men, whereof three of them I found were unarmed, 
and, as I thought, bound. When the first four or five of 
them Were jumped on shore, they took those three out of 
the boat, as prisoners. One of the three I could perceive 
using the most passionate gestures of entreaty, affliction. 


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and despair, even to a kind of extravagance. The other 
two, I could perceive, lifted up their hands sometimes, and 
appeared concerned, indeed, but not to such a degree as the 
first. I was perfectly confounded at the sight, and knew not 
what the meaning of it should be. Friday called out to me 
in English, as well as he could, “O master! you see English 
mans eat prisoner as well as savage mans.’’ “Why, Eriday,” 
says I, “do you think they are going to eat them, then — 
“Yes,” says Friday, ‘They will eat them.” — “No, no,” 
says I, “Friday, I am afraid they will murder them, indeed; 
but you may be sure they will not eat them.” 

All this while I had no thought of what the matter really 
was, but stood trembling with the horror of the sight, expect- 
ing every moment when the three prisoners should be 
killed; nay; once I saw one of the villains lift up his arm 
with a great cutlass, as the seamen call it, or sword, to strike 
one of the poor men; and I expected to see him fall every 
moment; at which all the blood in my body seemed to run 
chill in my veins. I wished heartily now for my Spaniard, 
and the savage that was gone with him, or that I had any 
way to have come undiscovered within shot of them, that I 
might have secured the three men, for I saw no firearms 
they had among them; but it fell out to my mind another 
way. After I had observed the outrageous usage of the 
three men by the insolent seamen, I observed the fellows 
'run scattering about the land, as if they wanted to see the 
country. I observed also that the three other men had 
liberty to go where they pleased; but they sat down all 
three upon the ground, very pensive, and looked like men 
in despair. This put me in mind of the first time when I 
came on shore, and began to look about me; how I gave 
myself over for lost; how wildly I looked around me; what 
dreadful apprehensions I had; and how I lodged in the tree 
all night, for fear of being devoured by wild beasts. 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


179 


As I knew nothing that night of the supply I was to receive 
by the providential driving of the ship nearer the land by 
the storms and tide, by which I have since been so long 
nourished and supported; so these three poor desolate men 
knew nothing how certain of deliverance and supply they 
were, how near it was to them, and how effectually and 
really they were in a condition of safety, at the same time 
they thought themselves lost, and their case desperate. 

It was just at the top of high water when these people came 
on shore; and while they rambled about to see what kind of 
a place they were in, they had carelessly stayed till the tide 
was spent, and the water was ebbed considerably away, 
leaving their boat aground. They had left two men in the 
boat, who as I found afterwards, having drunk a little too 
much brandy, fell asleep; however, one of them waking a 
little sooner than the other, and finding the boat too fast 
aground for him to stir it, hallooed out for the rest, who were 
straggling about; upon which they all soon came to the 
boat. It was past all their strength to launch her, the boat 
being very heavy, and the shore on that side being a soft 
oozy sand, almost like a quicksand. In this condition, like 
true seamen, who are, perhaps, the least of all mankind 
given to forethought, they gave it over, and away they 
strolled about the country again; and I heard one of them 
say aloud to another, calling them off from the boat, ‘‘Why, 
let her alone. Jack, can’t you she’ll float next tide;” by 
which I was fully confirmed in the main inquiry of what 
countrymen they were. 

All this while I kept myself close, not once daring to stir 
out of my castle, any farther than to my place of observation, 
near the top of the hill; and very glad I was to think how 
well it was fortified. I knew it was no less than ten hours 
before the boat could float again, and by that time it would 
be dark, and I might be at more liberty to see their motions, 


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and to hear their discourse, if they had any. In the mean- 
time, I fitted myself up for a battle, as before, though with 
more caution, knowing I had to do with another kind of 
enemy than I had at first. I ordered Friday also, whom I 
had made an excellent marksman with his gun, to load 
himself with arms. I took myself two fowling-pieces, and 
I gave him three muskets. My figure, indeed, was very 
fierce; I had my formidable goat-skin coat on, with the 
great cap I have mentioned, a naked sword, two pistols in 
my belt, and a gun upon each shoulder. 

It was my design, as I said before, not to have made any 
attempt till it was dark; but about two o’clock, being the 
heat of the day, I found, in short, they were all gone strag- 
gling into the woods, and, as I thought, were all laid down 
to sleep. The three poor distressed men, too anxious for 
their condition to get any sleep, had, however, sat down under 
the shelter of a great tree, at about a quarter of a mile from 
me, and, as I thought, out of sight of any of the rest. Upon 
this I resolved to discover myself to them, and learn some- 
thing of their condition; immediately I marched as above, 
my man Friday at a good distance behind me, as formidable 
for his arms as I, but not making quite so staring a specter- 
like figure as I did. I came as near them undiscovered as I 
could, and then, before any of them saw me, I called aloud 
to them in Spanish, “What are ye, gentlemen They 
started up at the noise, but were ten times more confounded 
when they saw me, and the uncouth figure that I made. 
They made no answer at all, but I thought I perceived them 
just going to fly from me, when I spoke to them in English: 
“Gentlemen,” said I, “do not be surprised at me; perhaps 
you may have a friend near, when you did not expect it” 
“He must be sent directly from heaven, then,” said one of 
them very gravely to me, and pulling off* his hat at the same 
time; “for our condition is past the help of man.” “All 


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181 


help is from heaven, sir,’’ said I; ‘‘but can you put a stranger 
in the way to help you ? for you seem to be in some great 
distress. I saw you when you landed; and when you 
seemed to make application to the brutes that came with 
you, I saw one of them lift up his sword to kill you.” 

The poor man, with tears running down his face, said 
“Our case, sir, is too long to tell you, while our murderers 
are so near us. In short, sir, I was commander of that ship. 



My men have mutinied against me. They have been 
hardly prevailed on not to murder me, and, at last, have 
set me on shore in this desolate place, with these two men 
with me — one my mate, the other a passenger, where we 
expected to perish, believing the place to be uninhabited, 
and know not yet what to think of it.” “Where are these 
brutes, your enemies.?” said I; “do you know where they 


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are gone?’’ ‘^There they lie, sir,” said he, pointing to a 
thicket of trees; ‘‘my heart trembles for fear they have 
seen us, and heard you speak; if they have, they will cer- 
tainly murder us all.” “Have they any firearms?” said I. 
He answered, “They had only two pieces, one of which they 
left in the boat.” “Well, then,” said I, “leave the rest to 
me; I see they are all asleep; it is an easy thing to kill them 
all; but shall we rather take them prisoners ?” He told 
me there were two desperate villains among them that it 
was scarce safe to show any mercy to; but if they were 
secured, he believed all the rest would return to their duty. 

I asked him which they were. He told me he could not 
at that distance distinguish them, but he would obey my 
orders in anything I would direct. “Well,” says I, “let 
us retreat out of their view or hearing, lest they awake, and 
we will resolve further.” So they willingly went back with 
me, till the woods covered us from them. 

“Look you, sir,” said I; “if I venture upon your deliver- • 
ance, are you willing to make two conditions with me?” 
He anticipated my proposals by telling me that both he and 
the ship, if recovered, should be wholly directed and com- 
manded by me in everything; and if the ship was not 
recovered, he would live and die with me in what part of the 
world soever I would send him; and the two other men 
said the same. “Well,” said 1, “my conditions are but two; 
first, — that while you stay on this island with me, you will 
not pretend to any authority here; and if I put arms in your 
hands, you will, upon all occasions, give them up to me, 
and do no prejudice to rne or mine upon this island, and in 
the meantime be governed by my orders; secondly,— -that 
if the ship is or may be recovered, you will carry me arid 
my man to England passage free.” 

He gave me all the assurance that the invention and faith 
of a man could devise, that he would comply with these 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


183 


most reasonable demands, and besides would owe his life 
to me, and acknowledge it upon all occasions as long as he 
lived. ‘‘Well, then,’’ said I, “here are three muskets for 
you, with powder and ball; tell me next what you think is 
proper to be done.” He showed all the testimony of his 
gratitude that he was able, but offered to be wholly guarded 
by me. I told him I thought it was hard venturing any- 
thing; but the best method I could think of was to fire on 
them at once as they lay, and if any were not killed at the 
first volley, and offered to submit, we might save them, 
and so put it wholly upon God’s providence to direct the 
shot. He said, very modestly, that he was loath to kill 

them, if he could help it; but that those two were incor- 
rigible villains, and had been the authors of all the mutiny 
in the ship, and if they escaped we should be undone still, 
for they would go on board and bring the whole ship’s com- 
pany, and destroy us all. “Well, then,” says I, “necessity 
legitimates my advice, for it is the only way to save our 
lives.” However, seeing him still cautious of shedding 
blood, I told him they should go themselves, and manage 
as they found convenient. 

In the middle of this discourse we heard some of them 
awake, and soon after we saw two of them on their feet. I 
asked him if either of them were the men who he had said 
were the heads of the mutiny.? He said, “No.” “Well, 

then, ” said I, “you may let them escape; and Providence 
seems to have awakened them on purpose to save them- 
selves. Now,” says I, “if the rest escape you, it is your 
fault.” Animated with this, he took the musket I had given 
him in his hand, and a pistol in his belt, and his two com- 
rades with him, with each man a piece in his hand; the two 
men who were with him, going first, made some noise, at 
which one of the seamen, who was awake, turned about, 
and seeing them coming, cried out to the rest; but it was too 


184 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


late then, for the moment he cried out they fired — I mean 
the two men, the captain wisely reserving his own piece. 
They had so well aimed their shot at the men they knew, 
that one of them was killed on the spot, and the other very 
much wounded; but not being dead, he started up on his 
feet, and called eagerly for help to the other; but the captain, 
stepping to him, told him it was too late to cry for help, he 
should call upon God to forgive his villainy, and with that 
word knocked him down with the stock of his musket, so 
that he never spoke, more; there were three more in the 
company, and one of them was slightly wounded. By this 
time I was come; and when they saw their danger, and that 
it was in vain to resist, they begged for mercy. The captain 
told them he would spare their lives if they would give him 
an assurance of their abhorrence of the treachery they had 
been guilty , of, and would swear to be faithful to him in re- 
covering the ship, and afterwards in carrying her back to 
Jamaica, from whence they came. They gave him all the 
protestations of their sincerity that could be desired; and 
he was willing to believe them, and spare their lives, which 
I was not against, only I obliged him to keep them bound 
hand and feet while they were upon the island. 

While this was doing, I sent Friday with the captain’s 
mate to. the boat, with orders to secure her, and bring away 
the oars and^ sails, which they did; and by and by three 
straggling men, that were (happily for them) parted from 
the rest, came back upon hearing the guns fired; and, seeing 
the captain, who before was their prisoner, now their con- 
queror, they submitted to be bound also; and so our victory 
was complete. 

It now remained that the captain and I should inquire 
into one another’s circumstances. I began first, and told 
him my whole history, which he heard with an attention 
even to amazement — and particularly at the wonderful 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


185 


manner of my being furnished with provisions and ammuni- 
tion; and, indeed, as my story is a whole collection of 
wonders, it affected him deeply. I carried him and his two 
men into my apartments, leading them in just where I 
came out, viz., at the top of the house, where I refreshed 
him with such provisions as I had, and showed them all the 
contrivances I had made during my long, long inhabiting 
that place. 

All I showed them, all I said to them, was perfectly 
amazing; above all, the captain admired my fortification, 
and how perfectly I had concealed my retreat with a grove 
of trees, which, having now been planted near twenty years, 
and the trees growing much faster than in England, was 
become a little wood, so thick that it was impassible in any 
part of it but at that one side where I had reserved my little 
winding passage into it. I told him this was my castle and 
my residence, but that I had a seat in the country, as most 
princes have, whither I could retreat upon occasion, and I 
would show him that too another time; but at present our 
business was to consider how to recover the ship. He 
agreed with me as to that, but told me he was perfectly at a 
loss what measures to take, for that there were still six-and- 
twenty hands on board, who, having entered into a cursed 
conspiracy, by which they had all forfeited their lives to 
the law, would be hardened in it now by desperation, and 
would carry it on, knowing that if they were subdued they 
should be brought to the gallows as soon as they came to 
England, or to any of the English colonies, and that, there- 
fore, there would be no attacking them with so small a 
number as we were. 

I mused for sorrre time upon what he had said, and found 
it was a very rational conclusion, and that therefore some- 
thing was to be resolved on very speedily, as well to draw 
the men on board into some snare for their surprise, as to 


186 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


prevent their landing upon us, and destroying us. Upon 
this, it presently occurred to me that in a little while the 
ship’s crew, wondering what was become of their comrades 
and of the boat, would certainly come on shore in their 
other boat to look for them, and that then, perhaps, they 
might come armed, and be too strong for us; this he allowed 
to be rational. Upon this, I told him the first thing we had 
to do was to stave the boat, which lay upon the beach, so 
that they might not carry her off, and taking everything out 
of her, leave her so far useless as not to be fit to swim. 
Accordingly we went on board, took the arms which were 
left on board out of her, and whatever else we found there. 
When we had carried all things on shore (the oars, mast 
sail, and rudder of the boat were carried away before), we 
knocked a great hole in her bottom, that if they had come 
strong enough to master us, yet they could not carry off the 
boat. Indeed, it was not much in my thoughts the we could 
be able to recover the ship; but my view was, that if they 
went away without the boat, I did not much question to 
make her again fit to carry us to the Leeward Islands, and 
• call upon our friends the Spaniards in my way, for I had 
them still in my thoughts. 

While we were thus preparing our designs, and had first, 
by main strength, heaved the boat upon the beach, so high 
that the tide would not float her off at high-water mark, 
and besides, had broken a hole in her bottom too big to be 
quickly stopped, and were sat down musing what we should 
do, we heard the ship fire a gun, and make a waft with her 
ensign as a signal for the boat to come on board; but no boat 
stirred; and they fired several times, making other signals 
for the boat. At last, when all their signals and firing 
proved fruitless, and they found the boat did not stir, we 
saw them, by the help of my glasses, hoist another boat out, 
and row towards the shore; and we found, as they ap- 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


187 


preached, that there were no less than ten men in her, 
and that they had firearms with them. 

As the ship lay almost two leagues from the shore, we had 
a full view of them as they came, and a plain sight even of 
their faces; because the tide having set them a little to the 
east of the other boat, they rowed up under shore, to come 
to the same place where the other had landed, and where 
the boat lay; by this means, I say, we had a full view of 
them, and the captain knew the persons and characters 
of all the men in the boat, of whom, he said, there were 
three very honest fellows, who, he was sure, were led into 
this conspiracy by the rest, being overpowered and fright- 
ened; but that as for the boatswain, who it seems was the 
chief officer among them, and all the rest, they were as 
outrageous as any of the ship’s crew, and were no doubt 
made desperate in their new enterprise; and terribly appre- 
hensive was he that they would be too powerful 
for us. 

We had, upon the first appearance of the boat coming 
from the ship, considered of separating our prisoners; and 
had, indeed, secured them effectually. Two of them, of 
whom the captain was less assured than ordinary, I sent 
with Friday and one of the three delivered men to my cave, 
where they were remote enough, and out of danger of being 
heard or discovered, or of finding their way out of the woods, 
if they could have delivered themselves; here they left them 
bound, but gave them provisions; and promised them, 
if they continued there quietly, to give them their liberty in 
a day or two; but that if they attempted their escape, 
they should be put to death without mercy. They prom- 
ised faithfully to bear their confinement with patience, and 
were very thankful they had such good usage as to have 
provisions and a light left them; for Friday gave them 
candles (such as we made ourselves) for their comfort; 


188 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


and they did not know but that he stood sentinel over them 
at the entrance. 

The other prisoners had better usage; two of them were 
kept pinioned, indeed, because the captain was not free to 
trust them; but the other two were taken into my service, 
upon the captain’s recommendation, and upon their solemnly 
engaging to live and die with us; so with them and the three 
honest men we were seven men, well armed; and I made 
no doubt we should be able to deal well enough with the 
ten that were coming, considering that the captain had said 
there were three or four honest men among them also. As 
soon as they got to the place where their other boat lay, 
they ran their boat onto the beach and came all on shore, 
hauling the boat up after them, which I was glad to see, 
for I was afraid they would rather have left the boat at 
anchor some distance from the shore, with some hands 
in her, to guard her, and so we should not be able to seize 
the boat. Being on shore, the first thing they did, they 
ran all to their other boat; and it was easy to see they were 
under a great surprise to find her stripped, as above, of all 
that was in her, and a great hole in her bottom. After 
they had mused awhile upon this, they set up two or three 
great shouts, hallooing with all their might, to try if they 
could make their companions hear; but all was to no pur- 
pose: then they came all close in a ring, and fired a volley 
of their small-arms, which, indeed, we heard, and the 
echoes made the woods ring; but it was all one; those in 
the cave, we were sure, could not hear; and those in our 
keeping, though they heard it well enough, yet durst give 
no answer to them. They were so astonished at the surprise- 
of this, that, as they told us afterwards, they resolved to go 
all on board again to their ship, and let them know that the 
men were all murdered, and the long boat staved. 

I perceived them go towards the shore, and imagined it 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


189 


to be as it really was, that they had given over their search, 
and were for going back again; and the captain, as soon as 
I told him my thoughts, was ready to sink at the appre- 
hensions of it; but I presently thought of a stratagem to fetch 
them back again, and which answered my end to a tittle. 
I ordered Friday and the captain’s mate to go over the little 
creek westward, towards the place where the savages came 
on shore when Friday was rescued, and so soon as they 
came to a little rising ground, at about half a mile distance, 
I bade them hallo out, as loud as they could, and wait till 
they found the seamen heard them; that as soon as ever 
they heard the seamen answer them, they should return it 
again; and then keeping out of sight, take a round, always 
answering when the others hallooed, to draw them as far 
into the island, and among , the woods, as possible, and 
then wheel about again to me by such ways as I directed. 

They were just going into the boat when Friday and the 
mate hallooed; and they presently heard them, and, answer- 
ing, ran along the shore westward, towards the voice they 
heard, when they were presently stopped by the creek, 
where, the water being up, they could not get over, and 
called for the boat to come up and set them over; as, indeed, 
I expected. 

When they had set thernselves over, I observed that the 
boat being gone up a good way into the creek, and, as it 
were, in a harbor within the land, they took one of the 
three men out of her, to go along with them, and left only 
two in the boat, having fastened her to the stump of a little 
tree on the shore. This was what I wished for; and imme- 
diately leaving Friday and the captain’s mate to their 
business, I took the rest with me, and crossing the creek out 
of their sight, we surprised the two men before they were 
aware; one of them lying on the shore, and the other being 
in the boat. The fellow on shore was between sleeping and 


190 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


waking, and going to start up; the captain, who was fore- 
most, ran in upon him, and knocked him down; and then 
called out to him in the boat to yield, or he was a dead man. 
There needed very few arguments to persuade a single 
man to yield, when he saw five men upon him, and his 
comrade knocked down; besides, this was, it seems, one of 
the three who were not so hearty in the mutiny as the rest 
of the crew; and, therefore, was easily persuaded not only 
to yield, but afterwards to join very sincerely with us. In 
the meantime, Friday and the captain’s mate so well man- 
aged their business with the rest, that they drew them, by 
hallooing and answering, from one hill to another, and 
from one wood to another, till they not only heartily tired 
them, but left them where they could not reach back to the 
boat before it was dark; and, indeed, they were heartily 
tired themselves also, by the time they came back to us. 

We had nothing now to do but to watch for them in the 
dark, and to fall upon them, so as to ‘make sure work with 
them. It was several hours after Friday came back to me 
before they came back to their boat; and we could hear the 
foremost of them, long before they came quite up, calling 
to those behind to come along; and could also hear them 
answer, and complain how lame and tired they were, and 
not able to come any faster; which was very welcome news 
to us. At length they came up to the boat; but it is impos- 
sible to express their confusion when they found the boat 
fast aground in the creek, the tide ebbed out, and their two 
men gone. We could hear them calling to one another in a 
most lamentable manner, telling one another they were 
got into an enchanted island; that either there were inhab- 
itants in it, and they should all be murdered, or else there 
were devils and spirits in it, and they should be all carried 
away and devoured. They hallooed again, and called their 
two comrades by their names a great many times; but no 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


191 


answer. After some time, we could see them, by the little 
light there was, run about, wringing their hands like men 
in despair, and sometimes they would go and sit down in 
the boat to rest themselves, then come ashore again, and 
walk about again, and so the same thing over again. My 
men would fain have had me give them leave to fall upon 
them at once in the dark; but I was willing to take them at 
some advantage, so as to spare them, and kill as few of them 
as I could; and especially I was unwilling to hazard the 
killing of any of our men, knowing the others were very well 
armed. I resolved to wait, to see if they did not separate; 
and therefore, to make sure of them^ I drew my ambuscade 
nearer, and ordered Friday and the captain to creep upon 
their hands and feet, as close to the ground as they could, 
that they might not be discovered, and get as near them as 
they could possibly, before they offered to fire. 

They had not been long in that posture, when the 
boatswain, who was the principal ringleader of the mutiny, 
and had now shown himself the most dejected and dispirited 
of all the rest, came walking towards them, with two more 
of the crew; the captain was so eager at having the principal 
rogue so much in his power, that he could hardly have 
patience to let him come so near as to be sure of him, for 
they only heard his tongue before; but when they came 
nearer, the captain and Friday, starting up on their feet, 
let fly at them. The boatswain was killed upon the spot; 
the next man was shot in the body, and fell just by him, 
though he did not die till an hour or two after; and the 
third ran for it. At the noise of the fire, I immediately ad- 
vanced with my whole army, which was now eight men: 
viz., myself, generalissimo; Friday, my lieutenant-general; 
the captain and his two men, and the three prisoners of 
war, whom we had trusted with arms. We came upon them, 
indeed, in the dark, so that they could not see our number; 


192 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


and I made the man they had left in the boat, who was now 
one of us, call them by name, to try if I could bring them to 
a parley, and so perhaps reduce them to terms; which fell 
out just as we desired; for, indeed, it was easy to think, as 
their condition then was, they would be very willing to 
capitulate. So he calls out as loud as he could to one of 

them, ‘‘Tom Smith! Tom Smith!’’ Tom Smith answered 
immediately, “Who’s that Robinson.?” for it seems he 
knew the voice. The other answered, “Ay, ay; for God’s 
sake, Tom Smith, throw down your arms and yield, or you 
are all dead men this moment.” “Who must we yield to.? 
Where are they.?” says Smith again. “Here they are,” 
says he; “here’s our captain and fifty men with him, have 
been hunting you these two hours; the boatswain is killed. 
Will Frye is wounded, and I am a prisoner; and if you do 
not yield, you are all lost.” “Will they give us quarter 

then. ?” says Tom Smith, “and we will yield.” “I’ll go 
and ask, if you promise to yield,” said Robinson, so he 
asked the captain; and the captain himself then calls out, 
“You, Smith, you know my voice; if you lay down your 
arms immediately, and submit, you shall have your lives, 
all but Will Atkins.” 

Upon this Will Atkins cried out, “For God’s sake, cap- 
tain, give me quarter; what have I done .? They have 
been all as bad as I;” which, by the way, was not true; 
for, it seems, this Will Atkins was the first man that laid 
hold of the captain, when they first mutinied, and used him 
barbarously, in tying his hands, and giving him injurious 
language. However, the captain told 'him he must lay 
down his arms at discretion, and trust to the governor’s 
mercy; by which he meant me, for they all called me gov- 
ernor. In a word, they all laid down their arms, and begged 
their lives; and I sent the man that had parleyed with them, 
and two more, who bound them all; and then my great 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


193 


army of fifty men, which, with those three, were in. all but 
eight, came up and seized upon them, and upon their boat; 
only that I kept myself and one more out of sight, for rea- 
sons of state. 

Our next work was to repair the boat and think of seizing 
the ship; and as for the captain, .now he had leisure to 
parley with them, he expostulated with them upon the 
villainy of their practices with him, and upon the further 
wickedness of their design, and how certainly it must bring 
them to misery and distress in the end, and perhaps to* the 
gallows. They all appeared very penitent, and begged hard 
for their lives. As for that, he told them they were none of 
his prisoners, but the commander’s of the island; that they 
thought they had set him on shore in a barren, uninhabited 
island; but it had pleased God so to direct them, that it 
was inhabited, and that the governor was an Englishman; 
that he might hang them all there, if he pleased; but as he 
had given them all quarter, he supposed he Would send them 
to England, to be dealt with there as justice required, except 
Atkins, whom he was commanded by the governor to advise 
to prepare for death, that he would be hanged in the morning. 

Though this was all a fiction of his own, yet it had its 
desired effect; Atkins fell upon his knees, to beg the captain 
to intercede with the governor for his> life; and all the rest 
begged of him, for God’s sake, that they might not be sent 
to England. 

There was no difficulty now in obtaining possession of 
the ship. She rode at anchor just against the mouth of 
the little creek. I saw my deliverance, visibly put into 
my hands, all things easy, and a large ship just ready 
to carry me away whither I pleased to go. 

I now had the mutinous sailors brought before me. I told 
them I had got a full account of their villainous behavior 
to the captain, and how they had run away with the ship. 


194 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


and were preparing to commit further robberies, but that 
Providence had ensnared them in their own ways, and that 
they were fallen into the pit which they had dug for others. 
I let them know that by my direction the ship had been 
seized; that she lay now in the road; and they might see 
by and by that their new captain had received the reward 
of his villainy, for that they might see him hanging at the 
yard-arm; that, as to them, I wanted to know what they had 
to say why I should not execute them as pirates, taken in 
the fact, as by my commission they could not doubt but I 
had authority to do. 

One of them answered in the name of the rest, that they 
had nothing to say but this, that when they were taken the 
captain promised them their lives, and they humbly implored 
my mercy. But I told them I knew not what mercy to show 
them; for, as for myself, I had resolved to quit the island 
with all my men, and had taken passage with the captain to 
go to England; and as for the captain, he could not carry 
them to England other than as prisoners in irons, to be tried 
for mutiny, and running away with the ship; the conse- 
quence of which, they must needs know, would be the 
gallows; so that I could not tell what was the best for them, 
unless they had a mind to take their fate in the island. If 
they desired that, I did not care; as I had liberty to leave 
it, I had some inclination to give them their lives, if they 
thought they could shift on shore. They seemed very 
thankful for it, and said they would much rather venture 
to stay there than be carried to England to be hanged. So 
I left it on that issue. 

When they had all declared their willingness to stay, I 
told them I would let them into the story of my living there, 
and put them into the way of making it easy to them. Ac- 
cordingly, I gave them the whole history of the place, and 
of my coming to it; showed them my fortifications, the way 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


195 


I made my bread, planted my corn, cured my grapes, and, 
in a word, all that was necessary to make them easy. I 
told them the story also of the sixteen Spaniards, that were 
to be expected, for whom I left a letter, and made them 
promise to treat them in common with themselves. 

I left them my firearms, viz., five muskets, three fowling- 
pieces, and three swords. I had above a barrel and a half 
of powder left; for after the first year or two I used but 
little, and wasted none. I gave them a description of the 
way I managed the goats, and directions to milk and fatten 
them, and to make both butter and cheese. In a word, I 
gave them every part of my story; and told them I should pre- 
vail with the captain to leave them two barrels of gunpowder 
more, and some garden-seeds, which I told them I would 
have been very glad of. Also, I gave them the bag of peas 
which the captain had brought me to eat, and bade them 
to be sure and sow and increase them. 

Having done all this, I left the next day, and went on 
board the ship. We prepared immediately to sail, but did 
not weigh anchor that night. The next morning early, two 
of the five men came swimming to the ship’s side, and made 
the most lamentable complaint of the other three, begged 
to be taken into the ship for God’s sake, for they would be 
murdered, and begged the captain to take them on board, 
though he hanged them immediately. Upon this, the 
captain pretended to have no power without me; but after 
some difficulty, and after their solemn promises of amend- 
ment, they were taken on board, and were, some time after, 
soundly whipped and pickled; after which they proved 
very honest and quiet fellows. 

Some time after this, I went with the boat on shore, the 
tide being up, with the things promised to the men; to which 
the captain, at my intercession, caused their chests and 
clothes to be added, which they took, and were very thankful 


19 ^ 


ROBINSON CRUSOE 


for. I also encouraged them, by telling them that if it lay 
in my way to send any vessel to take them in I would not 
forget them. 

When I took leave of this island, I carried on board, for 
relics, the great goatskin cap I had made, my umbrella, 
and one of my parrots; also I forgot not to take the money 
I formerly mentioned, which had lain by me so long useless 
that it was grown rusty or tarnished, and could hardly pass 
for silver till it had been a little rubbed and handled, and 
also the money I found in the wreck of the Spanish ship. 
And thus I left the island, the 19th of December, as I found 
by the ship’s account, in the year 1686, after I had been 
upon it eight-and-twenty years, two months, and nineteen 
days. 

When I came to England, I was a perfect stranger to* all 
the world, as if I had never been known there. My father 
was dead, and my mother and all the family extinct, except 
that I found two sisters and two of the children of one of 
my brothers. I had been long ago given over for dead. 


[The End.] 


The Swiss Family 
Robinson 

ORIGINALLY WRITTEN 
IN GERMAN BY JOHANN 
RUDOLF WYSS (1781-1830) 

Retold for American Boys 
and Girls 


The gentle Swiss teacher who wrote this 
classic story lived to see it translated into 
twenty-four different languages. He never 
dreamed of such success. As a professor 
of the academy in his native town of Berlin 
he had taken delight in weaving into a story 
many interesting and useful lessons for the 
instruction of the young. The pleasure 
boys and girls found in “Robinson Crusoe” 
gave him the hint. His story has become a 
classic which in popularity has outrun even 
DeFoe’s master work. 

The present edition was prepared by a 
teacher who has had many years of experi- 
ence with young Americans and who is 
skilled in the art of telling stories. The 
original text has been carefully revised. All 
the best editions published in the English 
language have been consulted. 

i2mo. Cloth. Illustrated. 50 cents. 


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